Helene St. James

USA TODAY Sports

Red Wings second-round pick starts prospect camp on Wednesday

He and his uncle%2C Todd%2C were born two decades apart almost to the day

Red Wings liked Tyler%27s strong finish to the season%2C reputation as a pest

DETROIT - The challenge is on: Come September, an older Bertuzzi and a younger Bertuzzi have something on the line.

Tyler Bertuzzi, fresh off being drafted in the second round by the Detroit Red Wings last month, will get his first experience of a Red Wings camp on Wednesday, when the team's annual development camp gets under way in Traverse City, Mich. The real deal comes in two months, when Bertuzzi will be a part of the prospects camp that will overlap with the main camp for the regulars, which includes Bertuzzi's uncle Todd.

Born two decades apart, almost to the day, Todd Bertuzzi, 38, is winding down his NHL career, while Tyler Bertuzzi, 18, is still years from starting his. What attracted the Red Wings to Tyler is his reputation as an outstanding agitator, someone so gritty that he has been described as even tougher as his uncle, who was considered the premier power forward in the NHL a decade ago.

Tyler wasn't expected to go as high as he did — second round, 58th overall — because he missed about two months with a whiplash injury. That limited Tyler to 43 games, which saw him produce 13 goals and 22 points, along with 68 penalty minutes for the Guelph Storm in the OHL. The Red Wings considered his strong finish to the season — along with his reputation as a pest — a good reason to nab him before he fell into the third round.

That, in short, led to a pleasantly surprised Tyler 10 days ago. He watched the draft while at home in Sudbury, Ontario.

"I was so excited when I heard my name," Tyler Bertuzzi said. "It was an honor to be drafted so high, and then by the Detroit Red Wings — it was awesome. My uncle has told me everything about what a great organization it is."

Tyler is the son of Todd's sister, Angela. Todd Bertuzzi also played for Guelph as a teenager. Storm coach Scott Walker gets a good deal of credit for Tyler's success. He "has taught me a lot about how to be an agitator and how to just let me play my game, and be good at it," Tyler said.

Tyler was a long shot to make the Storm when they drafted him in the fourth round of the Ontario Hockey League priority draft two years ago.

"I ended up making the team, and it's been nothing but great since," Tyler said. "They gave me a chance to play and a chance to get my confidence."

Confident enough to do a little offseason trash talking, it would seem. Asked to compare himself with his uncle, Tyler didn't hesitate to answer: "I'm meaner."

His uncle's reply? "We will see at camp, then."

Helene St. James writes for the Detroit Free Press, a Gannett company