Tyler Bertuzzi declines vaccine, won’t travel to Canada with Red Wings

The Detroit Red Wings expect to be shorthanded when they travel to Montreal to battle the Canadiens on Oct. 23. GM Steve Yzerman told reporters including Helene St. James of the Detroit Free Press that Tyler Bertuzzi, the Red Wings’ third-highest paid forward, has declined the COVID-19 vaccine, and the team anticipates that he will not travel with the club to Canada this season.

Because unvaccinated players are not expected to be paid for games/days missed due to COVID-related absences, including those caused by government restrictions and quarantines, Bertuzzi will forfeit $170K just for the eight game days the Red Wings have scheduled against Canadian teams. With travel days added (along with days in between games on their Western Canada trip from March 12-17) he could forfeit quite a bit more.

That said, the Red Wings didn’t actually confirm that Bertuzzi will be suspended during those trips, meaning there is still a chance he could receive his full salary. The benefit of a short suspension, other than saving money for the organization, is that teams will receive corresponding cap relief for those days away from the roster. The Red Wings, which currently sit $15M under the salary cap ceiling, wouldn’t benefit much from that added space.

Even though deputy commissioner Bill Daly projected just 10-15 players would be unvaccinated when the season begins, that will still pose an issue for some teams as they resume traveling around North America. Edmonton Oilers GM Ken Holland admitted Wednesday that one of his team’s players has also declined the vaccination, though he did not identify the player. While Bertuzzi may only miss eight games, Holland explained that his player could miss up to 30 given the quarantine that would be required for cross-border travel.