Todd McLellan has blunt instruction for Detroit Red Wings forward Jonatan Berggren
Forward Jonatan Berggren, who had been underperforming all year under former coach Derek Lalonde, revealed what new Coach Todd McLellan instructed him.
The Detroit Red Wings weren't getting the production that they needed from Jonatan Berggren, who scored 15 times as a rookie in 2022-23 but had only managed 4 goals in 33 games this year.
Under new head Coach Todd McLellan, Berggren netted a goal with an assist in Detroit's 4-2 win over the Pittsburgh Penguins on New Year's Eve. He picked the top corner of the net against former teammate Alex Nedeljkovic, giving the Red Wings the 1-0 lead:
After playing most of last year in the American Hockey League, Berggren has gotten a larger chance with the Red Wings. But after the termination of Derek Lalonde, McLellan met with Berggren and had a very specific instruction for him.
We had a meeting; he told me like let it loose, kind of like he wanted me to play offense and like he knows that I have skills in offensive game. It was a nice confidence boost for me to have the coach trust to maybe (make) a mistake, but it's not the whole world. It was kind of nice to have that meeting with him.
Every new coach has their own look how the game will play, and (I'm) feeling like Todd and I have kind of the same mindset about the game, how we want to play. So, right now it's feeling really, really good.
Not only did Berggren skate in a full 16 minutes of ice time, but he also had his 1st multi-point game of the year, something he's attributing to not overthinking things as much.
I feel like maybe I was thinking a little bit too much about don't make mistake in the beginning. So, it was nice to hear from him that he sees and knows what I can do, and he has trust in me.
Of course, it's not like toe-drags on the blue line, but like be offensive player and have the confidence to do it, too.
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