Bergenheim Brings Speed, Work Ethic and Experience to Wild

With untimely injuries to forwards Matt Cooke, Ryan Carter and Jason Zucker, Chuck Fletcher needed to make a move in order to keep the recent momentum going. It came Tuesday afternoon, when the Wild grabbed veteran left-winger Sean Bergenheim from the Panthers.

Dec 1, 2014; Columbus, OH, USA; Florida Panthers left wing Sean Bergenheim (20) during the third period against the Columbus Blue Jackets at Nationwide Arena. Columbus defeated Florida 2-1. Mandatory Credit: Russell LaBounty-USA TODAY Sports

Bergenheim will suit up for his new team on Thursday night against the Predators, just two days after his acquisition.

He hopes to continue his solid play this season for a better team in a bigger role.

“I’m pretty happy with how I’ve played this season in the role I’ve been given,” Bergenheim told the Star Tribune. “But I know there’s a lot more energy in me to play a better role. … I want to bring energy, I want to bring forechecking, I want to bring pressure in the offensive zone. I want to get the pucks to the net, get myself to the net, and hopefully score some goals. I think in that sense I can help the team.”

The Wild gave up a 2016 third-round pick on Tuesday for Bergenheim and a seventh-round pick in the 2016 draft. The 31-year old left-winger from Helsinki, Finland has played a whopping 489 NHL games, totaling 95 goals and 84 helpers. He’s compiled 18 points in 39 games with an average of just 14 minutes per game this season.

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It should be a new experience, as he’s never suited up for the Western Conference. He played five seasons for the Islanders, one for the Lightning and three for the Panthers.

Bergenheim asked for a trade from Florida a few weeks ago due to decreased ice time. The Panthers are trying to get younger, the Wild need forward depth and Bergenheim just wants to play, so all parties involved should be happy.

“I wasn’t a healthy scratch once until I asked for a trade,” said Bergenheim. “I feel I’ve played well. It’s hard for me to say what went wrong, because I don’t have any issues with anybody in that organization in any way.”

According to Wild captain Mikko Koivu, Bergenheim’s experience and work ethic should help the team down the stretch. “[Experience is] always an important thing,” Koivu said. “He’s a good two-way player. He can help in a lot of areas.”

The Wild will play 4 of their next 5 games on the road, then return to Minnesota for 10 of 14 at home, before finishing the season on the road at Chicago, Nashville and St. Louis. It will be a tough stretch, but the Wild have control of their own destiny. Hopefully Bergenheim’s leadership will take hold right from the get-go.

Next: Dubnyk's Fantastic Run with Wild

Feb 26, 2015; Nashville, TN, USA; Minnesota Wild left winger Sean Bergenheim (23) skates during warmups prior to the game against the Nashville Predators at Bridgestone Arena. Mandatory Credit: Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports