Tyson Barrie is here to win a job.
Even if that means skipping out on Daddy duty for the time being.
“She’s putting a lot of work in back home,” the 33-year-old said Thursday of his wife Emma; the pair welcomed a daughter last month after having a son three years ago.
Here in Calgary, it’s familiar, yet different for Barrie. A veteran of 809 NHL contests, he’s with the Flames on a professional try-out (PTO) after spending the 2023-24 campaign with the Nashville Predators.
It’s here in the Stampede City that Barrie hopes to add to a career point total that passed the 500 mark a season ago.
“(It’s) a different situation than I’ve been in the past, but you approach it the same way,” he said following his first official skate with the Flames. “I’ve worked hard all summer, I’ve got a good opportunity ahead of me.
“I know I’m a good player and I’ve got some game left in me.”
Barrie lands here with an eye on earning that opportunity, claiming a job not just on talent, but drive and determination.
Flames head coach Ryan Huska’s message was simple Thursday: ‘if you can help us win, we’re going to keep you.”
It stands to reason that Barrie can do just that. After all, he’s skated in the Stanley Cup Playoffs in six of the past seven seasons.
But with Flames captain Mikael Backlund and Huska, Barrie really won. The trio were part of the Kelowna Rockets squad that captured the WHL title back in 2009.
There’s familiarity, and comfort, and for a player in Barrie’s situation, that goes a long way.
“I’m sure we’ve all changed a little bit since then, but Husky, he was my coach for four years and he kind of got to see me run a little bit when I was younger,” he said. “I would say the familiarity though, just of the personalities and having a guy like Backs to be able to lean on when I get here, having a good relationship with Husk, it makes it easy on a guy like myself, coming in, in a situation like this.”
The sands of time haven’t dampened Backlund’s enthusiasm, either.
“First of all, great teammate, great person, I loved playing with him in Kelowna,” Backlund said. “I’m really excited to see him again, to have him on my team. He’s such a great hockey player, he’s such a smart defenceman, really skilled offensively but also very reliable defensively.
“I hope he has a good camp and earns a spot here, I think he definitely could help our team.”
There’s work to be done between now, and Calgary’s regular-season opener Oct. 9 in Vancouver.
Fifteen years on from being drafted by the Avalanche, Barrie has a keen sense of knowing what to expect, and how to comport himself.
And that’s just what Huska wants to see. His former WHL protege, at his best.
“Just to be Tyson, is probably the biggest thing,” Huska said when asked what he wanted to see out of Barrie. “He would probably tell you that he hasn’t been happy with his last couple years, but he’s a guy that’s played over 800 games in the NHL, he knows how to play the game and he’s got a special talent in regards to working on the powerplay.
“When you go through a summer and you’re not able to find a contract, and you come on a PTO, it kind of forced him to have a really good summer. He’s a very proud guy and from what I saw today, he’s in very good shape and I know he’s going to push very hard to earn a spot on this team.”
His resume speaks for itself, and there’s no question a player of Barrie’s calibre and experience could help Calgary’s new-look roster find its way this season.
It’s a shot.
It’s an opportunity.
And Barrie is here to capture it.
“The coaches know me, obviously I’ve played against the Flames a lot over the past few years so they know what I’m capable of,” he said. “It’s a chance where the staff and the team knows what I’m capable of, and knows the type of person I am, so it was important to go to a spot where you know you’re going to get a fair shake.”
