Former Maple Leafs Tyler Bertuzzi and Ilya Mikheyev Attend Chicago Bears Season Opener Ahead of Blackhawks Debut
Bertuzzi and Mikheyev attended Soldier Field on Sunday before their first season with the Chicago Blackhawks gets underway.
A pair of former Toronto Maple Leafs appear to be settling into their new city nicely as Tyler Bertuzzi and Ilya Mikheyev attended the Chicago Bears’ season opener on Sunday ahead of the 2024-25 season with the Chicago Blackhawks.
Featured on the Bears' Instagram story, Bertuzzi and Mikheyev – both former Leafs, though never teammates – were coincidentally photographed together at Soldier Field.
Both players are new additions to the Blackhawks' roster. Bertuzzi, who spent the 2023-24 season with the Leafs, signed a four-year, $22 million contract to make the move to Chicago in the offseason. The 29-year-old had 21 goals, 22 assists, and 43 points in 80 regular season games. The forward tied a team-high in points with four (1G, 3A) alongside Auston Matthews and Max Domi in the postseason.
Mikheyev, meanwhile, was acquired by the Blackhawks in June via a trade from the Vancouver Canucks, alongside former Leafs forward Sam Lafferty and a 2027 second-round pick. The 29-year-old winger initially signed a four-year, $19 million deal in free agency in 2022 after spending three seasons with the Leafs. In the 2023-24 season, Mikheyev scored 11 goals and added 20 assists for 31 points in 78 games.
The two forwards were not the only now-former Leafs to pack up and move to Chicago. The club also added veteran defenseman T.J. Brodie, who was with the Leafs for four seasons before departing in NHL free agency to join the Blackhawks in July. The series of moves marks a busy offseason in Chicago, as the organization continues to build around cornerstone forward Connor Bedard.
Though the combination of Bertuzzi, Mikheyev, and Brodie never crossed paths in Toronto, they will now have the opportunity to join forces in Chicago.
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