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Tyson Barrie

Poll: Is Tyson Barrie A Significant Upgrade Over Jake Gardiner?

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While most people look at the Toronto Maple Leafs’ acquisition of Tyson Barrie as a major plus when the team picked up the lead defenseman and Alex Kerfoot for Nazem Kadri and Calle Rosen on July 1, there are other analytics experts who suggest that the addition of Barrie isn’t much, if any improvements over Jake Gardiner, who the team has allowed to walk away in free agency.

Of course, Barrie looks like an impressive upgrade, especially when you look at his offensive numbers. Barrie scored 14 goals and 59 points last season and posted 57 points the previous year, giving Toronto another top-notch offensive defenseman next to Morgan Rielly. Gardiner was a second-pairing defenseman whose offense disappeared last year with 30 points, even though he posted 52 points the previous season. However, only one player, Barrie or Rielly, can get those first-line power play minutes and there is no guarantee that Barrie will be able to pry those minutes away from Rielly next season, suggesting that Barrie’s number’s could drop quite a bit. In fact, two goals and 23 assists came off the power play last season where Barrie was the team’s quarterback of the first power play unit.

However, analytics suggest that Gardiner, despite his struggles might prove to be a better blueliner, especially defensively. While Toronto is an offensive juggernaut, Gardiner still had a plus-19 rating in plus-minus, while there are some questions about how good a defender Barrie is. In Colorado, Barrie posted a minus-3 on an Avalanche squad that made the playoffs last season and a minus-19 the previous year, when they were a playoff team as well. While plus-minus might be considered to be an unreliable fact, Gardiner has been solid for Toronto despite the fact receiving Toronto fans wrath for years. He has averaged over 21:48 of ATOI over the past three years and in those three years ranks 23rd in the league in points with 125. In goals above replacement (GAR), which is an all-encompassing stat to evaluate skaters, Gardiner ranked 17th among defenseman last year and fifth in the league at even strength, according to evolving-hockey.com. Barrie ranked 50th last season and 66th at even strength.

However, Gardiner’s value seems to have dropped. Despite being considered one of the top defensive free agents on the unrestricted free agent market, Gardiner remains unsigned with rumors he’s seeking $7MM per season. While a change in scenery might have been needed for Gardiner, it doesn’t necessarily mean that Barrie will be the better player.

So, is Barrie a significant upgrade over Gardiner?

Trade Rumors app users, click here to vote.

Toronto’s Barrie Expected To Demand $8MM Next Year

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Although the Toronto Maple Leafs have plenty of obstacles still to deal with this offseason still, including working out a contract with restricted free agent Mitch Marner, the team may have even more problems approaching them a year from now.

While the Maple Leafs forwards should be in good shape next season as the team will have few to no free agents to worry about, the newly reconstructed defense will be an entirely different story as only one of their defenseman, Morgan Rielly, is signed beyond the 2019-20 season. The team has five unrestricted free agents blueliners and another two restricted free agents defenders, which could create quite a bit of unrest next summer.

However, to make matters worse, the Toronto Sun’s Steve Simmons writes that newly acquired Tyson Barrie is expecting to cash in on his next contract next summer and could be looking to demand an eight-year deal at $8MM per season next year. The 27-year-old has been incredibly consistent over the last few years, putting up 14 goals and a career-high 59 points last season and has averaged 49 points over the past six seasons. He is finishing up a four-year, $22MM contract at $5.5MM, but because Colorado retained half his salary, the team is only on the hook for a $2.75MM AAV this season. However, an $8MM contract could force the Maple Leafs to allow the blueliner to walk away for nothing.

The team will likely have to make some tough decisions as Jake Muzzin and Cody Ceci will also be unrestricted free agents. Much of those decisions will likely depend on how well they play next season and how their salaries can fit into their tight salary cap situation. The team has a few other lesser free agents, including Justin Holl and Martin Marincin, but they also may have to give significant raises to restricted free agents Travis Dermott and Ben Harpur. The team will get a small break next season when the contract of Nathan Horton and his $5.3MM finally expires, which should help, but that isn’t likely to solve all those problems either. There will be little money available to help the team out without more cost-cutting moves.

Morning Notes: Dzingel, Hall, Kadri

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Ryan Dzingel is arguably the top remaining unrestricted free agent, ranked No. 12 overall by PHR and the leading scorer this past season among all available names. Yet, there’s been surprisingly little noise surrounding Dzingel, a 27-year-old coming off of a career high’s across the board. The New York Post’s Larry Brooks writes that some teams are skeptical about Dzingel’s potential for production, not based on his year overall but rather his late-season stint with the Columbus Blue Jackets. After being moved at the NHL Trade Deadline by the Ottawa Senators, Dzingel recorded just 12 points in 21 games with Columbus and eventually lost the trust of the coaching staff in the postseason, with one point in nine games earning him a healthy scratch. Brooks remarks that the Blue Jackets’ lack of interest in retaining Dzingel, a former star at nearby Ohio State University, is one of several “red flags” for the young winger this off-season.

It’s likely that price is playing a role in Dzingel’s market as well. After a 56-point campaign, Dzingel’s camp was though to be seeking a $5MM AAV over a long-term contract. In a vacuum, that would seem to be a fair offer, but in a market where many teams are closer to the salary cap limit than expected, a player who is coming off a disappointing final few months of the season may need to lower his expectations. That rings especially true if he wants to land with one of his reported top destinations and a team known to have interest, the Chicago Blackhawks. Dzingel is an Illinois native and his skill set would seem to fit in perfectly with his hometown Blackhawks, who could still use another top-six winger. However, The Chicago Sun-Times’ Ben Pope writes that the team would have to move out a player, likely Artem Anisimov or Connor Murphy, to accommodate Dzingel’s salary demands. Until that happens, Pope cites GM Stan Bowman, who recently said his roster is “pretty full” and currently only in need of “housekeeping”. That doesn’t mean that Chicago, whose off-season moves have pointed toward a deep desire to return to contender status, will not continue to pursue Dzingel, but it may prove too difficult at his current asking price. If the scoring winger wants to ensure he has a long-term fit in a place that he’d like to be, Dzingel could consider taking a lesser deal to join the Blackhawks.

  • Another team looking to return to the playoffs are the New Jersey Devils and GM Ray Shero and company have certainly done their part in that pursuit this summer, drafting Jack Hughes, trading for P.K. Subban, and signing Wayne Simmonds. While the ultimate goal is to become a contender as soon as possible, the more pressing need – also with that goal in mind – is to convince superstar forward Taylor Hall that New Jersey is a team worth staying with to win a Stanley Cup. Hall is an impending free agent next summer and could be in line for a record-breaking contract, whether he tests the open market or not. The Devils have the cap space to meet his salary demands, but needed to focus this off-season on improving the talent around him after a season in which the team finished well outside the playoff picture. On paper, New Jersey should return to relevance next season and early indications are that Hall is happy with the transformation. In an interview with TSN, the 2018 Hart Trophy winner said that seeing the summer used to improve the talent level of the team and inject new blood after a disappointing campaign is exactly what you want to see. He added that Shero asked his opinion of the Subban trade before it was made and that he was totally on board and excited to play with his fellow star. All signs point to Hall being in favor of these off-season changes and eager to get started with the new season. If the Devils perform to the level they should on paper, Hall will have much more reason to consider a long-term extension to stay in New Jersey.
  • New Colorado Avalanche center Nazem Kadri could have gone elsewhere if he wanted. The Toronto Sun’s Steve Simmons reports that Kadri flexed his No-Trade Clause to block a trade to the Calgary Flames. Even after taking calls from Flames GM Brad Treliving and head coach Bill Peters, Kadri nixed a deal that would have seen he and Connor Brown, now an Ottawa Senator, go to Calgary in exchange for T.J. Brodie and Mark Jankowski. Simmons did not explain why Kadri was anti-Calgary, but did note that the fit in Colorado is better. As for the end result for the Leafs, Tyson Barrie and Alexander Kerfoot are a better package, but cost the the team young defenseman Calle Rosen, who Simmons states they did not wish to move, as well as a third-round pick. Also, Brodie would have been a more affordable defenseman to re-sign compare to Barrie, who could very well price himself out of Toronto after one year. It’s a toss up on which deal would have been better had Kadri not put his foot down.

Toronto Maple Leafs Acquire Tyson Barrie

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The Toronto Maple Leafs have acquired Tyson Barrie, Alexander Kerfoot and a 2020 sixth-round pick from the Colorado Avalanche in exchange for Nazem Kadri, Calle Rosen and a 2020 third-round selection. The Avalanche will also be retaining 50% of Barrie’s contract, which results in the Maple Leafs only being responsible for a $2.75MM cap hit for the offensive defenseman.

For some time now the Maple Leafs have been looking for an upgrade on the right side of their blue line, and will get it in Barrie who is coming off another incredible offensive season. The 27-year old had 14 goals and 59 points for the Avalanche and has been one of the league’s top puck-movers since entering the league back in 2011-12. Through 484 career games, Barrie has 307 points and could form a solid one-two punch with Morgan Rielly who is also coming off a career-best 72-point season. The team now projects to have a brand new right side with Barrie joining Cody Ceci who was acquired from the Ottawa Senators earlier today.

The Leafs have actually cleared even more cap space with this deal for the time being, as Kadri had three years left on his contract and carried a $4.5MM hit. That may change quickly however as Kerfoot is a restricted free agent coming off consecutive 40+ point seasons after signing out of Harvard University. The 24-year old decided not to join the New Jersey Devils who originally drafted him and instead went to Colorado where he has enjoyed a healthy opportunity playing both center and wing. Kerfoot has recorded 31 of his 85 career points on the powerplay, but may not get quite the same chance to touch the puck in Toronto with the man advantage given their glut of talented forwards.

For Colorado, this deal is all about securing a legitimate second-line center to play behind Nathan MacKinnon. Though Kadri was limited to just 16 goals and 44 points last season with the Maple Leafs that was more about opportunity and usage than talent. The seventh-overall pick from 2009 had consecutive 32-goal seasons prior to Toronto’s signing of John Tavares which bumped him down in the lineup, and he should get close to that again if given the chance in Colorado. The fact that he is cost-controlled for three more seasons at a more than reasonable $4.5MM makes him an extremely valuable piece for the Avalanche who have added a fair amount of scoring prowess in the last few days.

The biggest reason Barrie was even available is the way the Avalanche have built out their blue line, with names like Cale Makar, Bowen Byram and Conor Timmins all looking like they will be real contributors next season. The Maple Leafs meanwhile will hope that they can maintain some level of depth down the middle with the signings they made today, adding Jason Spezza and Nick Shore to the mix. William Nylander and Kerfoot also have experience at center, while Auston Matthews and John Tavares will obviously dominate the playing time and matchups.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Morning Notes: Barrie, Subban, Penguins

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For all the anticipation that the NHL Entry Draft creates, fans were left somewhat disappointed last night when not a single player was traded. All the viewers got from the floor in Vancouver was the Arizona Coyotes moving up three spots and the Philadelphia Flyers adding a second-round pick. The kind of movement that had been hinted at all day never materialized, perhaps thanks to the still-not-finalized cap ceiling. The league is expected to release the final number today, hopefully kicking the market into gear.

Nevertheless, here are some notes from last night’s show:

  • The player most rumored to be on the move yesterday may have been Tyson Barrie, who was linked several times to the Vancouver Canucks. The offensive defenseman’s name came up even more when the Colorado Avalanche selected Bowen Byram fourth overall, but GM Joe Sakic wants everyone to calm down. Sakic told A.J. Haefele of BSN Denver that there is no truth to the idea that Barrie is already traded, and Adrian Dater of Colorado Hockey Now that the rumors are “news to him.” Even with the apparent denials, Barrie’s name will continue to float around in trade speculation until he has a new deal with the Avalanche or is moved. The 27-year old is entering the final year of his current contract and carries a $5.5MM cap hit.
  • Another defenseman drawing plenty of speculation is Nashville Predators star P.K. Subban who is apparently on the market as the team tries to clear cap space. Subban has three years remaining at a huge $9MM cap hit, but Darren Dreger of TSN suggested that the Predators may be willing to retain up to $3MM of that. If that’s true, there will likely be teams lined up to take on the Norris-winning defenseman.
  • After a disappointing season from the Pittsburgh Penguins and some frustrated comments from GM Jim Rutherford, some expected the team to make a huge move and send one of their superstar talents packing this summer. While the team did try to move Phil Kessel to the Minnesota Wild, they won’t be dangling Evgeni Malkin or Kris Letang. Rutherford spoke to Jonathan Bombulie of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, and told him it’s “highly unlikely” that either one is moved and that there was never an intention to have a ton of roster turnover in Pittsburgh.

Latest On Tyson Barrie

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It seemed relatively surprising when a report surfaced that Colorado Avalanche defenseman Tyson Barrie was “in play” this weekend, but his name has now popped up in a couple of other locations as well. Darren Dreger of TSN tweeted last night that “Barrie trade consideration seems to have amplified” and listed Carl Soderberg as another player whose name had come up. Dreger was then on WGR550 in Buffalo this morning and connected both the Vancouver Canucks and Arizona Coyotes to the defenseman. Then, Adrian Dater of Colorado Hockey Now tweeted that he’d heard “chatter” about the Canucks offering Jake Virtanen and a 2020 first-round pick for Barrie, though obviously nothing has been confirmed yet.

Barrie, 27, is coming off an outstanding offensive season with the Avalanche in which he recorded 59 points in 78 games, but has just a single year left on his current contract and is scheduled to become an unrestricted free agent next summer. Add that to the potential emergence of Cale Makar on the right side and the powerplay for the Avalanche and the team seems to be at least listening on their top defenseman.

Still, this chatter doesn’t mean that the team is set on moving Barrie. He is after all an extremely important part of the team and GM Joe Sakic has fought strongly in favor of him in the past. Barrie signed a four-year, $22MM deal with the Avalanche in 2016 and carries a $5.5MM cap hit for this season.

Tyson Barrie Hopes To Sign Contract Extension This Summer

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Avalanche defenseman Tyson Barrie has been with the organization since they drafted him in the third round back in 2009.  He has since played in 470 games with Colorado but with some promising young players on the horizon, he has been part of trade speculation over the last couple of years.  With one year left on his deal, Barrie told Mike Chambers of the Denver Post that he wants to remain with the team and get an extension done this offseason:

I love it here. I’ve been here my whole career and I’d like to be a part of it going forward. But at the end of the day, that’s up to management and where they see this going. That’s probably a conversation for a later date. But this is the second home for me. It’s become home. I spend a lot of time here. I love the guys. I love the organization. At the end of the day, it’s a business. But I do love it here.

Barrie’s offensive prowess (including 103 points over 132 games over the past two seasons) has made his $5.5MM AAV a relative bargain and considering he’ll be 29 at the start of 2020-21 when his next contract will begin, it stands to reason that he’ll be looking at a nice raise on his next deal.  That presents a bit of a conundrum for the Avs who are a team that doesn’t typically come close to spending to the Upper Limit (and will be handing winger Mikko Rantanen a significant contract as an RFA this summer).  Is it worth handing out a big contract to Barrie knowing their financial limitations and the fact that they have quality prospects like Cale Makar and Conor Timmins in the system?

Makar is one of the top prospects in the league and is having a dominant second season in college.  There’s a good chance that he’ll turn pro next season and should be able to play a regular role right away.  Timmins has yet to play this season due to a concussion but his upside is still high.  Both youngsters are strong at the offensive end and are right-hand shots like Barrie.  Can they justify having all three on the roster a few years from now?

That’s what makes the trade potential for Barrie intriguing.  Right-shot defenders are in high demand and his skillset is one that many teams would covet.  Colorado could get a significant return for his services so even if Barrie wants to sign an extension quickly (he can do so as of July 1st), it wouldn’t be surprising to see his name resurface in trade speculation closer to the draft.

Snapshots: Avalanche, Karlsson, Green

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While Avalanche defenseman Tyson Barrie has been involved in trade speculation for quite some time, it doesn’t appear as if they’re in any rush to move him.  In his latest 31 Thoughts podcast (audio link), Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports that they’re only going to consider a ‘hockey deal’ for the 27-year-old which would take away the idea of a futures-based return.  He adds that Colorado could wind up being fairly quiet on the trade front as they want to get a better read on the young core that they currently have, even if it might result in them taking a step back and missing the playoffs in 2018-19.

Elsewhere around the league:

  • While the Senators stated that they had offered a long-term extension to defenseman Erik Karlsson back on July 1st, the blueliner told Postmedia’s Michael Traikos that he hadn’t spoken to GM Pierre Dorion or owner Eugene Melnyk since November when the team requested his no-trade list. He wound up being flipped to San Jose earlier this month and while no extension has been agreed upon just yet, GM Doug Wilson stated that he’s “very comfortable with the situation”.  If they want to work out a max-term contract though, they will have to wait until after the trade deadline on February 25th.
  • The good news didn’t last too long for Red Wings defenseman Mike Green. Helene St. James of the Detroit Free Press notes that the blueliner is dealing with fatigue issues that have resulted in the team shutting him down for the time being.  Head coach Jeff Blashill told reporters, including Dana Wakiji of the teams’ website (Twitter link), that the cause of the fatigue is a virus that has attacked his liver.  As a result, his availability for the start of the season is now in serious question.  GM Ken Holland indicated that four prospects will be pushing for what now appears to be two spots on the opening roster – Dennis Cholowski, Joe Hicketts, Filip Hronek, and Libor Sulak.

Central Notes: Crawford, Morrow, Greenway, Granlund, Zadorov

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The Chicago Blackhawks are hoping that goaltender Corey Crawford returns to action sooner than later after admitting that he’s been dealing with concussion issues when he went down last season. Still experiencing difficulties with concussions, head coach Joel Quenneville said the goal is to have the veteran goaltender out on the ice during practice as long as he can manage it, according to the Chicago Sun-Times Mark Lazerus.

“Good progress. Comparable over the last week and a half that when he’s on the ice, he’s better and he’s stronger and he’s feeling better. It’s all encouraging.”

The team desperately hopes that Crawford, upon return, will return to his elite form. He posted a 2.27 GAA and an impressive .929 save percentage in 28 games before going down. While it is unknown how much longer Crawford will be out, the Blackhawks are preparing to use Cam Ward as their primary starter if they have to.

  • With the loss of Toby Enstrom, who opted to leave the NHL after 11 years with the Winnipeg Jets, the Jets have an opening for a defenseman and that candidate is likely to be Joseph Morrow, according to Ken Wiebe of the Winnipeg Sun. Morrow, who the team acquired at the trade deadline a year ago. The blueliner didn’t get a lot of playing time when he arrived in Winnipeg as his ATOI dropped from 17:47 in Montreal to 14:30 with the Jets. However, he now has a chance to crack a spot in the top four as he did fare well in limited time next to Dustin Byfuglien. “Yeah, that’s a dream to play with Big Buff and be able to match that guy’s personality,” Morrow said. “I got to play with him a bit last year and we were pretty successful together.”
  • The Minnesota Wild and head coach Bruce Boudreau have added a couple wrinkles into the early stages of camp as rookie Jordan Greenway has been playing the center position, while Mikael Granlund has been quarterbacking the first-unit power play, according to Mike Russo of The Athletic (subscription required). Greenway, normally a winger, was used at center during his junior year at Boston University by David Quinn. Boudreau wanted to keep him there as he led a line along with Joel Eriksson Ek and Charlie Coyle, which was a big success in their first scrimmage. Granlund also showed that he could handle the pressure of running a power play on the left wall and looked impressive in that role. “I thought the best testament was all the other forwards want to play the right half wall the way he was feeding them up there,” Boudreau said. “He can make that play. He can even put the behind-the-back pass to Suts. Granny has probably been our most skilled player. I don’t think I’m dissing anybody by saying that. When he’s got the puck, he’s pretty special.”
  • Unlike last year when Colorado Avalanche defenseman Nikita Zadorov came into camp overweight and out of shape, this year, the bruising 23-year-old did just the opposite, according to Mike Chambers of the Denver Post. He’s come into camp in good shape and has changed his diet to accommodate his conditioning. The 6-foot-5, 230-pound blueliner started in Jared Bednar’s doghouse for the early part of the season due to his conditioning, but slowly worked his way back into the rotation before finally settling in next to veteran Tyson Barrie and that hasn’t changed so far in training camp. Now, with the team much happier with his development, he has a chance to develop into a solid NHL defenseman.

Simon Despres Wants A Second Chance At NHL

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Simon Despres was once an up-and-coming defenseman in the NHL. A first-round pick by Pittsburgh in 2009, Despres played a key depth role for the Penguins from 2011 to 2015. Although Despres was limited offensively, even in the AHL, he proved himself to be a very dependable presence in his own end. Annually a positive player with strong possession numbers, Despres eventually worked himself into a full-time role with the Penguins in 2014-15. In that season, he also showed off an improved physical game and a superior puck-moving ability. However, it was also in that season that Despres was traded to the Anaheim Ducks, a deadline deal that sent veteran Ben Lovejoy to Pittsburgh. Despres continued to play well for the Ducks down the stretch and was perhaps at the peak of his NHL career in the postseason that year with a dominant stretch. Yet, the rest of Despres’ tenure in Anaheim would not go as well.

In 2015-16, just four games into the regular season, Despres took a hard check to the head from the Colorado Avalanche’s Tyson Barrie. Despres would miss the next 42 games of the regular season and never truly returned to form in the campaign. Despres suited up for Anaheim for the opening game of the 2016-17 season, but concussion symptoms limited him to just that one appearance for the year. Despres was bought out by the Ducks at the end of the season and, at age 25, was considering retirement. Instead, Despres decided to continue his career overseas. Able to finally leave his concussions in the past, Despres had a strong season with HC Slovan Bratislava of the KHL this year. Now, he wants back in the NHL.

Speaking with Jean-Francois Tremblay of La Presse in his native Quebec, Despres states that money is not an issue and that he will do what it takes to get back into the league. He says that he will visit with teams this summer or attend camp on a tryout basis if that is what it takes. He even says he would be open to an AHL contract as a first step, specifically noting that he would not hesitate to accept an offer from the Laval Rocket, the Montreal Canadiens affiliate in his hometown that did not exist when he was in the NHL. Despres goes on to describe how he has changed his diet and lifestyle to get healthier and has even trained in martial arts in an effort to learn how to avoid bad hits and further concussions. He also describes how his time in the KHL has improved his skating and puck possession. It seems Despres has done all he can to work his way back from a potentially career-ending injury and now feels ready for a return. Now all he can do is wait for a team to give him a second chance.

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