Chicago Blackhawks Deliver Major Demotion to $22M Forward

The Chicago Blackhawks are a literal bottom-dwelling organization who are 8th in the Central Division.

And Tyler Bertuzzi hasn't helped the matter at all, which is why he's found himself stapled on the fourth line tonight against the San Jose Sharks.

He'll join newly acquired forward, Joe Veleno, and Lukas Reichel and in a forechecking role as a result of his declining production.

Bertuzzi can no longer rely on the Maple Leafs stars to hitch onto here in Chicago, and the decline is glaring.

He's gone on an 18-game goal drought and hasn't been much of a playmaker during his time in Chicago.

This season in 65 games for the Blackhawks, he's only put up 34 points (17 G, 17 A) and Interim Coach Anders Sorensen has failed to figure out the "why" of why he's no longer on fire this season.

The Bertuzzi during the second half of the season, has failed to deliver a quality product on the ice, despite being a fixture in the top six for the Hawks.

What's funny about the current situation of Bertuzzi is, that he's gone through a similar drought in Toronto last season, despite getting chances.

Unlike Chicago however, Sheldon Keefe wouldn't demote him so this is the first time he's suffered consequences for his lack of production.

It seems that instead of giving Bertuzzi a dose of reality, he'd keep him on top-six with the Maple Leafs stars, and would be able to get a nice new contract benefitting from playing with Matthews.

Can Bertuzzi turn a demotion into a promotion later down the road? Maybe he should ask Ryan Donato about how he leveraged that opportunity into a new contract, and the trust of Anders Sorensen.