Tyson Barrie agreed to a one-year, $3.75 million contract with the Edmonton Oilers on Saturday.
The 29-year-old defenseman scored 39 points (five goals, 34 assists) in 70 games with the Toronto Maple Leafs last season and did not have a point in five games in the Stanley Cup Qualifiers.
"For me, it was a no-brainer, with everything that's going on and coming off the year that I had, to be able to have a chance to go into Edmonton and play with this team on a one-year deal," Barrie said. "For me, it just wasn't about money this year, just coming into reestablish myself and show the League that I'm still a pretty good player. They've got a lot of pieces in Edmonton. I love what they did with [Kyle] Turris and getting [Tyler Ennis] signed up too, so I think we've got a pretty great team and I'm looking forward to getting involved."
Barrie said he spoke with Edmonton captain Connor McDavid before signing and that there was discussion with the Oilers about a longer contract.
"[McDavid] actually reached out to me two days ago just to kind of let me know he'd be excited to have me," Barrie said. "He's been great, and we talked a little bit about some longer-term stuff with [general manager Ken Holland], but first and foremost, we don't even know what the year's going to look like yet and how it's going to play out, whether we're going to be in a bubble, etc., so I'm just super-focused on coming in in great shape and stepping in to help this team win. And whatever happens after that, so be it. But my focus is on just having a good start."
Barrie was acquired by the Maple Leafs with forward Alex Kerfoot and a sixth-round pick in the 2020 NHL Draft (forward Joe Miller) on July 1, 2019, from the Colorado Avalanche for forward Nazem Kadri, defenseman Calle Rosen and a third-round pick in 2020 (forward Jean-Luc Foudy).
Selected by the Avalanche in the third round (No. 64) of the 2009 NHL Draft, Barrie has scored 346 points (80 goals, 266 assists) in 554 regular-season games with the Maple Leafs and Avalanche, including 129 (21 goals, 108 assists) on the power play, and 14 points (one goal, 13 assists) in 26 playoff games.
Barrie said he does not view himself as a power-play specialist and believes his game is suited for the Oilers' up-tempo style.
"I've had a lot of good years 5-on-5, but I get labeled as the power-play specialist kind of thing," he said. "Sometimes I feel that's unwarranted, but that's not for me to say.
"I love the way Edmonton plays. They play fast. They drive teams back. They've got guys who pull up and find the late guy, and that's kind of where my bread and butter is, following the rush up, beating the forechecker up the ice and becoming that fourth man. I think with the speed that Edmonton has, it kind of fits right in. Hopefully I can put some in the back of the net coming late."
NHL.com staff writer Tim Campbell contributed to this report
