Barberio Thrilled To Return To Avalanche

Mark Barberio wanted to be back in a Colorado Avalanche uniform next season.
That desire was mutual.
Barberio will be sticking around Colorado through the 2019-20 campaign after the Avs re-signed the defenseman to a two-year contract on Tuesday.
"When we had our exit meetings at the end of the year, it was positive meetings with the coaches and with Joe (Sakic, Avalanche executive vice president/general manager)," Barberio told ColoradoAvalanche.com. "I made it clear right away that I wanted to be back. They reciprocated that. It was just a good fit, and I'm just happy that we got a deal done early in the summer and now I can just focus on my training and getting strong and ready for another season."

Since being drafted in the sixth round by the Tampa Bay Lightning in 2008, Barberio, now 28, has played 239 regular-season games with three clubs and the last 80 contests with the Avalanche.
"Mark has been a steady part of our blue line since joining the team and has helped solidify our defensive depth," said Sakic in a release. "He has played important minutes for us and has been a key penalty killer."
Colorado claimed the blueliner on waivers from the Montreal Canadiens on Feb. 2, 2017, and he played in each of the final 34 contests with the Avs that season. Barberio began 2017-18 as one of the team's staples on defense during a campaign that ended with a trip to the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

That doesn't mean there weren't bumps in the road in his first full season with the Avalanche.
After skating in 23 of the first 25 games of the year, Barberio was a healthy scratch for the contest on Dec. 5 against the Buffalo Sabres, ending a streak of playing 22 consecutive outings.
"I think at that point of the season, I was going through a run of games there where my decision making wasn't where it should be," Barberio recalled. "My effort level was always good, was always in the right place, but I was making some poor puck decisions and defensive decisions. It was just a chance for the coaches to take me out for a game and let me watch the game from further out and watch the video and take a step back."
The Montreal, Quebec, native took the wake-up call in stride and played with a chip on his shoulder from there on out.
"I was thinking I got to make sure that doesn't happen again," he said. "I have to prove my worth to the team and prove that I can be an everyday guy for the squad."
Over the next 21 games, Barberio improved in nearly every statistical category from the first two months of the year. He had more points (9 from 4), shots (30 from 20), average ice time (17:54 from 16:33), plus/minus rating (+10 from -6), hits (15 from 8) and blocked shots (28 from 27), and he did it in two fewer contests.

"Just try and simplify things. Get the puck, try and move my feet, find my first option, hit him with the pass and then join the rush," Barberio said. "Just try and not over complicate my life, and making sure that I was playing hard and being responsible on both sides of the puck."
Adversity hit again in late January as he missed 33 games due to injury.
Hockey players endure minor ailments throughout the grueling season, and Barberio was dealing with one of those at the time. But things took a turn for the worst during morning skate on Jan. 25 prior to the game at St. Louis Blues, as an injury flared up and forced him to miss the next 10 weeks.
"It was something that a couple times I thought I was on the comeback trail and had some setbacks," said Barberio on April 4 following his first full practice. "It took longer than expected, but that is the nature of injuries sometimes, you can't control that."

After two-plus months away, Barberio returned to the Avalanche lineup the following day against the San Jose Sharks for Game No. 81 of the campaign and then played in the season finale two nights later against the Blues with a playoff spot on the line.
Colorado had to win that last contest in regulation to clinch a postseason berth, and the club did just that with 5-2 victory. Barberio was a big part of that game, as he finished with a plus-2 rating and played 20:30, one of the most minutes of his season.
"It meant a lot to get back," Barberio said. "It was really tough to miss time and miss such important games down the stretch. I was just really thankful that I was able to get back and play two games and still contribute to what we were trying to do, trying to get to the playoffs."
In six postseason games, Barberio played a team-high 170 shifts and ranked third on the squad in ice time (22:18), second in blocks (13) and fifth in shots (11). Much like during the regular season, he was also a mainstay in short-handed situations, averaging 2:17 of penalty-kill time per outing in the series versus the Nashville Predators.

Making the playoffs was especially sweet for Barberio and a handful of other players that returned to the club following a tough season the year before in 2016-17. Barberio and the Avs had something to prove and showed it on the ice.
Colorado had the organization's second-longest winning streak at 10 games, tied a franchise record with 26 home wins and finished the year with 95 points, a 47-point turnaround that is tied for the fourth best year-to-year improvement in NHL history.
"We talked about that in training camp--that nobody expects anything out of ourselves--so we just got to go out and prove everybody wrong," Barberio said. "I think we took that to heart and wanted to prove people wrong. That prior season was a tough year, but this is a new season, we have a new group. We got younger, we got more energy, more enthusiasm… It was just a really fun season."
Barberio wrapped up a two-year deal that he signed with Montreal in 2016 following the Avalanche's playoff run and could have tested the market as an unrestricted free agent later this summer.
Instead, he chose to try and keep the good vibes rolling in Denver.
"I'm really happy to be coming back," Barberio exulted. "I just feel like it is a good fit. I really like the organization. I'm happy about it."