Buffalo Sabres: Is Patrik Berglund finished in Western New York?
By Paul Taylor
In an interesting turn of events, the Buffalo Sabres have suspended Patrik Berglund indefinitely after he failed to report to the team.
When the Buffalo Sabres received Patrik Berglund as part of the return package for Ryan O’Rielly, the overriding sentiment was that his addition was a positive. He came with a résumé of being a reliable, consistent, two-way player, who would provide invaluable leadership for the younger players.
Unfortunately for both the Sabres and Berglund himself, this hasn’t been the case. Instead, his season reached a new low on Saturday, when the team confirmed he had been suspended indefinitely.
The reason given, was that the 30-year-old had failed to report to the team. This came after previously missing time due to illness.
Inevitably, this led to the question of why Berglund didn’t report back to the team? If he was still ill, there would theoretically have been no reason for the Sabres to suspend him.
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Sabres coach Phil Housley discussed the situation with the media, although he did not offer much more information. As reported by Stephen Whyno of the Associated Press, Housley said:
"“From my knowledge talking to the medical staff, he was ill, so we handled it that way. Obviously it developed into something different, and (general manager Jason Botterill) and the management are handling that.”"
At the time of posting, neither Berglund or his agent have offered any comment. So what has happened?
Fair or not, the general opinion is that the center’s absence is related to his attitude. It has been regularly speculated that he has not been much of a team player, contrary to what the perspective of him was entering the 2018-19 campaign.
In fact, as per Mike Harrington of The Buffalo News, at one point earlier this season, some of the players referred to Berglund as the “Swedish godfather”. It was felt that he would help all the young Swedes.
However, despite starting the season as the second-line center, the 2006 first round draft pick struggled and has spent most of his time in the bottom six. His poor play has been reflected in his production, or lack thereof; if you prorate his current overall statistics over the course of this season, it will be his worst ever in the pros.
Given Berglund’s performances, it was entirely feasible he would be a healthy scratch at some point. Regardless, as per Harrington, when this happened in San José, he was reportedly furious.
In fairness, any player who is competitive, would arguably react similarly. However, it then depends how he responded to the healthy scratch, e.g. did he buckle down and work harder, or become less of a team player and more awkward to work with?
Again, it should be stressed that even with the information that is available, we still don’t know for sure what has happened. In this respect, it isn’t fair to castigate Berglund as things stand. (Not that this will stop people!)
For all we know, the Swedish native could be dealing with something personal. This could theoretically include family problems, or health issues. (Remember when it came out last season, that former Buffalo Sabres’ goaltender Robin Lehner was dealing with mental health and substance abuse issues.)
Regardless of what has happened, it will be interesting to see how this situation plays out and whether Berglund will ever suit up for the Sabres again? In this respect, one final aspect to consider is his contract, which has three years remaining after this season, along with an annual cap hit of $3.85 million.
As per Zach Leach of Pro Hockey Rumors, Berglund has a limited No-Trade Clause with a 20-team no-trade list. However, just as he had to agree to the move to Buffalo, if we assume he is just frustrated with his lack of playing time, you imagine he will just as readily approve a move elsewhere.
What’s your perspective on the situation involving Berglund? Do you believe he has a future with the Buffalo Sabres, or do you predict he will be moved sooner than later? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.