{"id":527613,"date":"2026-03-28T14:16:14","date_gmt":"2026-03-28T14:16:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/527613\/"},"modified":"2026-03-28T14:16:14","modified_gmt":"2026-03-28T14:16:14","slug":"jbd-a-consistent-presence-for-red-wings-detroit-hockey-now","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/527613\/","title":{"rendered":"JBD A Consistent Presence For Red Wings \/ Detroit Hockey Now"},"content":{"rendered":"

Detroit<\/a> Red Wings defenseman Jacob Bernard-Docker<\/a> scored his first goal for his new team against the team that didn\u2019t want to pay him.<\/p>\n

Playing his first game since signing a contract extension with the team, Bernard-Docker netted the goal that gave Detroit a 4-1 lead over the Buffalo Sabres<\/a> on Friday. The Wings went on to win the game 5-2.<\/p>\n

Bernard-Docker finished last season with the Sabres. He became an unrestricted free agent when the Sabres opted not to present him with a qualifying offer on July 1, 2025. The Red Wings swooped in and signed the defenseman to a one-year contract with an AAV of $875,000, barely above the NHL minimum of $775,000.<\/p>\n

Detroit and the 25-year-old Bernard-Docker agreed to terms on a two-year contract extension with an AAV of $1.6 million on Wednesday.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve been talking for a little bit, so super happy to get it done,\u201d Bernard-Docker said. \u201cAnd now we can just really focus on the playoffs here.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s not surprising that Bernard-Docker would jump at Detroit\u2019s offer. He nearly doubled his salary and was able to do so over multiple years. Not bad for a guy who was in and out of the lineup at his two previous NHL stops in Ottawa and Buffalo. <\/p>\n

He\u2019s played 56 games this season with the Red Wings. During the 2024-25 campaign, Bernard-Docker played 25 games for the Senators and 15 for the Sabres.<\/p>\n

However, it was more than opportunity that was causing Bernard-Docker to embrace Detroit.<\/p>\n

\u201cI mean, I think the group is awesome,\u201d Bernard-Docker said. \u201cCoaching staff, you know, obviously management\u2019s showing trust in me.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s an honor, honestly, to put on the Red Wings jersey every day, and I\u2019m super pumped for another two years.\u201d<\/p>\n

It Took Time For JBD To Find His Red Wings Footing<\/p>\n

Bernard-Docker was a healthy scratch for 11 of Detroit\u2019s first 21 games this season. Once Bernard-Docker found his way into the lineup, taking him out became problematic. <\/p>\n

\u201cWhen\u00a0we\u00a0went\u00a0to\u00a0a\u00a0steady\u00a0lineup,\u00a0a\u00a0steady\u00a0rotation,\u00a0and\u00a0he\u00a0felt\u00a0like\u00a0he\u00a0wasn\u2019t\u00a0going\u00a0to\u00a0be\u00a0in\u00a0and\u00a0out,\u00a0he\u00a0really\u00a0settled\u00a0in,\u201d Red Wings coach Todd McLellan<\/a> said. <\/p>\n

\u201cDoc\u2019s\u00a0biggest\u00a0asset\u00a0is\u00a0just\u00a0his\u00a0simplicity.\u00a0And\u00a0he\u2019s\u00a0physically\u00a0strong.\u00a0He\u00a0might\u00a0not\u00a0be\u00a0six-six, but whatever he has is strong. And he wins a lot of tight battles, physical force-type battles, often against bigger players.\u201d<\/p>\n

McLellan also appreciates the yin and yang that\u2019s developed in the club\u2019s third defensive pairing between Bernard-Docker and Albert Johansson<\/a>. <\/p>\n

\u201cWell,\u00a0they\u00a0both\u00a0understand\u00a0their\u00a0strengths\u00a0and\u00a0weaknesses,\u201d McLellan said. \u201cI think that they complement each other in those avenues.<\/p>\n

\u201cDoc\u00a0is\u00a0heavy\u00a0and\u00a0strong,. Albert\u2019s\u00a0got\u00a0good\u00a0mobility,\u00a0good\u00a0escape\u00a0skills\u00a0when\u00a0he\u2019s under pressure, and some good vision up ice.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo between the two of them, they play well together.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Detroit Red Wings defenseman Jacob Bernard-Docker scored his first goal for his new team against the team that…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":527614,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[377],"tags":[1511,93,5,11082,4],"class_list":{"0":"post-527613","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-hockey","8":"tag-detroit-hockey-now","9":"tag-detroit-red-wings","10":"tag-hockey","11":"tag-jacob-bernard-docker","12":"tag-nhl"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nhl\/116307229910123990","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/527613","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=527613"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/527613\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/527614"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=527613"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=527613"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=527613"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}