Iced Up Youngsters: Dustin Byfuglien
Dustin Byfuglien is one bad man. He’s big, he’s strong, and he’s versatile enough to play multiple positions. Oh yeah, he’s also a Stanley Cup Champion.
Career Stats (GP – G-A-Pts)
- 2005-2006: 25 – 3 – 2 – 5
- 2006-2007: 9 – 1 – 2 – 3
- 2007-2008: 67 – 19 – 17 – 36
- 2008-2009: 77 – 15 – 16 – 31
- 2009-2010: 82 – 17 – 17 – 34
As he’s progressed in his career, his numbers have gone up. Exactly what you want to see from a young player.
Profile: Byfuglien (Buff-lin) had a less decorated path to the NHL than other well known players. He didn’t represent his country (USA), he didn’t set scoring records, and he didn’t draw major media coverage as he moved up the ranks. He simply loved the game, and went about doing his business as he saw fit. He moved to a suburb of Chicago to play AAA under-18 hockey, and later moved to Canada to give himself a better chance of making it. There, he played in the WHL, where he put up some pretty nice numbers for a defenseman. In his final season, he tallied 22 goals and 36 assists in 64 games. He garnered enough attention to get the Chicago Blackhawks to pick him in the eighth round of the 2003 NHL Entry Draft (245th overall). It didn’t take him too long to get some chances with the big club, as he played 2 seasons in the AHL before finally getting called up.
What makes him special?: Big Buff cannot be missed any time he steps onto the ice. While he normally plays defense, the ‘Hawks have used him as a winger and planted him in front of the net on occasion when they needed to. The past two seasons he was highly instrumental in the playoffs, especially when it came to eliminating the Vancouver Canucks in both years. His game is simple, but effective. He’s big (6’3″, 246lbs.), and he knows how to use his size to his advantage. Once he starts motoring, get out of his way or he’ll run you over. He’ll throw the big hit to get the puck, and is hard to move once he has control of it. And when he sets up to screen the goalie, it’s almost impossible to move him (legally). With the way referees call penalties nowadays, you can’t chop the big tree down, he’s too strong to get pushed, so you’re best bet is to try to tie his stick up. And for a defenseman playing up front, he’s picked up a few subtleties that have helped him go a long way. He knows when to move away from the net and how to find open space to unleash a dangerous one timer. In the 2010 playoffs he provided a number of clutch goals en route to helping Chicago win the Stanley Cup (3 goals in the Finals). Unfortunately for Byguglien, and Chicago fans, he was a salary cap casualty in the off-season, and was shipped off to Atlanta. He’ll be looked upon to provide some leadership to a franchise that doesn’t have much of a history, yet.
Jersey Worthy?: Eh, maybe. He’s a popular guy, but let’s face it, he’s not really a star. He will lay some hard hits, score some big goals, and win some hearts. He’s not a franchise player, so I’d recommend his jersey only to those that are collectors, not to the people hoping to invest in one sweater to wear for a long time.
Hate Factor: Mid-range. With a guy this big and this physical, we can expect there to be some controversy. He plays hard, he’s not dirty, but at some point he’s going to catch somebody at the wrong time. He’s a pain in the ass for goalies everywhere, and he’ll be a factor in any rivalry that his team is a part of. Also, commentators fawn over his goal scoring ability (a little too much, considering a decent amount are dirty goals). It’s not his fault, but the media does build him up to be a bit better than he really is.
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