> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.pensionplanpuppets.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Getting to know Teddy Blueger - URL: https://www.pensionplanpuppets.com/getting-to-know-teddy-blueger-depth/ - Published: 2026-09-22T12:37:07.000Z - Updated: 2026-09-22T12:37:07.000Z - Description: The last new versatile depth forward. - Author: Cathy Squires - Tags: Player Profile When Brad Treliving traded for Dakota Joshua, there were many fans who had wished he'd gotten linemate Teddy Blueger instead. Now these two are reunited but with a lot more water under the bridge since their golden season together. The Leafs signed Blueger to a two-year deal with an AAV of $2.5 million on July 1. Blueger, from Latvia, is sometimes called Teodors Blugers, but he has lived in North America most of the time since he was a young teenager, and he uses an anglicized version of his name now. ### The Basics: Vitals and Stats - Age: 32 - **Position**: C (shoots left) - **Height**: 6' - **Weight**: 185 lbs - Draft: 52nd overall in 2012 #### Stats Drafted by the Penguins, Blueger spent four years in the NCAA and then two in the AHL before he made his NHL debut just before he turned 25\. He has split his career between Pittsburgh and Vancouver, with one deadline-deal stint in Vegas in 2023 where he won the Cup, but played in only a few games in the playoffs. Vegas acquired him as depth insurance and just didn't need to make the claim against the policy that would have seen him play more. He also missed most of last season and has only played a full season once in his NHL career. On his most recent season from [Canucks Army](https://canucksarmy.com/news/amid-disaster-least-teddy-blueger-outperformed-expectations-2025-26-year-review?ref=pensionplanpuppets.com): > Blueger played in four preseason games, but sustained an undisclosed injury somewhere in there that was listed as “week-to-week,” and would ultimately keep him out of the first couple games of the regular season. > He returned on October 17 against Chicago, scored a goal two nights later against Washington, and then exited the lineup again. This latest injury was undisclosed, though it was later described as “lower body,” and it was unclear whether it was related to the first ailment. Either way, it would keep Blueger out of the lineup considerably longer. > Blueger himself described what happened next: “There were two setbacks throughout the process. I think the whole timeline ended up being double, if not more, than what kind of I originally anticipated.” > That doubled timeline wound up keeping Blueger away from October 19 all the way through to January 21\. His issue was described postseason as a leg muscle injury. The piece linked above makes a case that Blueger played better than the nominally better players around him as the terrible Vancouver season wound down. Which is one of the themes of his career – that he's better than he seems by his points, his usage or the expectations of his sometimes less than stellar teams. Canucks fans have the same problem we do when discussing last season. It's difficult to measure the impact of an individual when everything about the team is dysfunctional and the quality of the players on the ice is in constant decline. What stands out is that Blueger played 17 minutes per game last season, much more than he should be playing, given his profile, and he was Vancouver's fifth most used forward post-deadline. Canucks Army are correct in their assessment that his goal and point pace was outstanding in the 35 games he played; however, that was driven by a hot shooting percentage that is not going to be repeated. In his more usual role as a third-line centre who PKs, Blueger has some mixed results. That golden season of 2023-2024 involved a lot of Connor Garland as well as Joshua, and their line created a lot of offence which the team desperately needed. Since then Blueger has been grinding out minutes on teams that struggle to keep hold of the puck. His performance in the 2024-2025 season was uninspiring in almost all ways and might be down to some injuries that finally caught up with him last year. He is sometimes described as being a good faceoff centre, but his career percentage is 50, and the positive numbers all date from at least four years ago. [NHL Edge](https://www.nhl.com/nhl-edge/skaters/teddy-blueger-8476927/20222023/2/skating-speed?ref=pensionplanpuppets.com) shows him to be an average or even below-average skater, with some very limited ability with speed bursts. He does not take many penalties, and has a positive differential or close to it most seasons. #### Advanced Stats ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/34/01/3401a938-f468-4c02-a227-9bc4cc09bad4/content/images/2026/08/Screenshot-2026-08-17-085324.png) Moneypuck.com His personal shooting is the sort you expect in a depth player who succeeds at all. He drives the net and shoots from in close. In his very poor year the prior season, he uncharacteristically shot a lot from very poor locations in addition to his usual net-front concentration. His career shot rate is low, what you'd expect for his role. His Expected Goals rate is on the high side for a depth player because of the net-front concentration. He shows consistent value on defence, on playmaking, although he has no notable shooting skill above normal. His PK results are always good to excellent. The only times isolation models credit him with offence creation is the 2023-2024 season and his brief sojourn in Vegas. Those two seasons also mark the only time in his recent career he has not been played against top-line forwards more than average. The golden year, and the one after: ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/34/01/3401a938-f468-4c02-a227-9bc4cc09bad4/content/images/2026/08/Screenshot-2026-08-17-091147.png) ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/34/01/3401a938-f468-4c02-a227-9bc4cc09bad4/content/images/2026/08/Screenshot-2026-08-17-091220.png) #### Highlights To give you the idea of his game, some of his 17% shooting season. The first goal here is peak Canucks. ### The Good: Blueger is the epitome of the good-pro depth player at this stage of his career. He is genuinely good at the PK, where a lot of forwards with PK minutes are just the guy who can't be on the power play. He is good enough at faceoffs that he can play as the 4C or as a winger who takes some draws, and he plays that straightforward, positional, net-driving game that makes coaches comfortable with their depth. He has more offensive ability than many players of his type, but he doesn't get lost on the ice looking to get points for himself. He can play up the lineup legitimately, and his results look better with better linemates (not always the case if a player is too over his head). He plays a disciplined and focused game, doesn't take penalties and doesn't take a lot of risks. He has very good defensive results that have been consistent across his usage over his recent career – up until last season. ### The Flaws: He's not a fast skater and he relies on his linemates to move the puck up the ice because of this. When he has been played up the lineup, he requires his linemates to have the offensive skill necessary to make things happen. He has missed a great deal of time with injuries, which might be an artifact of how he plays and might be just bad luck. ### Overall Assessment Teddy Blueger has the reputation of a tough, grinder, good pro, defensively responsible PKer and depth centre who will make the coach happy and a team better. This is all true, and importantly it remains true when he is faced with very tough competition. He rises to the level of better teammates very well, but has had that one very terrible year in Vancouver where it all went wrong. He deserves accolades for his performance last year coming off a long injury recovery and rejoining the one team that might have been in more disarray than the Leafs. He more than rose to that occasion, in fact he soared above those around him, so put him in the same category as John Tavares: immune to the Malaise. He could play the third line, but likely would be more effective as the 4C with first PK unit minutes added on to get to him closer to 15 minutes per game. He can ably replace Scott Laughton, but will likely generate the same insistence he should play more because he seems like he should be able to. If the Leafs don't need him to, that's a good outcome. If he is actually able to play a regular third-line role that's an excellent outcome but very unlikely. Put him with Brandon Duhaime and you have the solid pro and the flashy agitator all ready to go in one package.