Bergfors Re-Signs in Atlanta

There has been some tweets on Monday morning saying that Niclas Bergfors has re-signed with the Atlanta Thrashers with plenty of time to spare before training camp opens for the veterans on the team. The reports are saying that Bergfors has signed a 1-year deal worth $900,000, likely to keep everyone's options open for a new deal for the 2012 season.  This will be Bergfors first deal outside of his entry-level deal and will likely be asked to keep up the scoring pace that he had in 2010 to earn a long-term deal for more money.

In 2010 between New Jersey and Atlanta, Bergfors scored 21 goals and 23 assists in 81 games and was one of the key pieces going to Atlanta in the Ilya Kovalchuk trade at the deadline last season.  Bergfors' 44 points in 2010 was good enough to rank him 120th among forwards and he was sitting on the list of top unsigned players that you would be looking to draft this Summer and his stock is still on the rise.

The Thrashers are in a period of transition and the chemistry will be the biggest factor in the scoring for most players on this team, so tread lightly with them this year.  Projections for Bergfors are generally favourable this year; the Hockey News has him down at 41 points, Forecaster has him up at 58 points, the Pooler's Guide has him up at 50 points and Dobber has him up at 47 points.  Bergfors will be getting plenty of ice-time as a top scoring winger, I will be interested to see who centres him.