GRAND RAPIDS - Goals may not solely define success for the Griffins' Tyler Bertuzzi, but his recent run of scoring doesn't hurt his confidence, either.

The second-year forward, who struggled mightily to start of the season, is in the midst of his best production to date. He has a goal in five of the past seven games, including three in a row, as the Griffins prepare to host Iowa on Friday.

That's a good sign for Bertuzzi, who now has eight goals after starting the season scoreless his first 26 games. When he scores, the Griffins also usually win (7-2-0-0).

"It's confidence, getting accustomed to playing and the surroundings and knowing where he fits in," said coach Todd Nelson. "He has the skills to score, no question, but he has a lot of grit and he gives us some of that physical presence we need."

Bertuzzi, Detroit's third choice in 2013 and who turned 21 on Wednesday, is valued as a rugged force on the ice while the jury's out on what kind of scorer he will be as a pro. He had 98 points in 68 games last season in juniors with Guelph Storm, but he also had 91 penalty minutes.

Tyler Bertuzzi arrived to the Griffins with a bang in the playoffs last season.

He has 121 so far with the Griffins, second most in the league, including six misconducts.

"Nellie has told me, 'Hey, really good game tonight' and I'll have nothing on the board," said the 6-foot-1, 190-pound Bertuzzi. "I try to play hard, get on bodies and grind and play good defensively in the zone. If I do little things like that, I'm happy with myself. The goals will come."

He also contributed to his own pressure at the start of the season. Last year, he arrived in Grand Rapids shortly before the playoffs began and joined Dylan Larkin as upstarts who stole the postseason. Bertuzzi played great with seven goals and 12 points in 14 games, while Larkin had three goals and five points in six games.

"I really didn't know what to expect because it's my first full season as a pro," Bertuzzi said. "I had a pretty good playoff run. I thought I was playing good hockey at the start (of this season) but the points weren't there."

He was surprised the season didn't start better,

"I'm hard on myself," he said. "Obviously, I want to score and contribute offensively, so I had to realize that points are everything. So I was grinding and getting my confidence going."

He also agreed his exuberance as a physical force has worked against him. Bertuzzi, the nephew of longtime veteran Todd Bertuzzi, has been suspended twice this season - for a slew foot against Toronto in November and for a cross check at Iowa on Feb. 12.

Bertuzzi is enjoying success playing with center Tomas Nosek and a recent change that has brought in big-shooting right wing Martin Frk into the mix.

"It's a good group," Bertuzzi said. "We'll all have something to contribute. (Nosek) is a good center man and can get the puck out and Frk has the hardest shot around and I'm a grinder. So it's been really good the last few games."

The Griffins have three consecutive home games this weekend, with Iowa on Friday and Saturday and a 4 p.m. game Sunday against Chicago.



Pete Wallner covers sports for MLive/Grand Rapids Press. Email him at pwallner@mlive.com or follow him on Twitter, Facebook or Google+.

