Tyson Barrie is well-travelled.
And, at least for the time being, well-rested.
“I hope my wife doesn’t read this, but I’m in bed by, like, 9 p.m. every night,” Barrie said of his temporary accommodations in a Calgary hotel. “I know she’s putting a lot of work in back home, and I really appreciate that. But yeah, I’m getting a lot of sleep.”
Barrie is a proud father of two — a three-year-old boy and one-month-old girl — but his wife and little ones remain on Vancouver Island, waiting for word on whether they’ll be spending this winter in Cowtown.
The 33-year-old point-patroller is attending Flames’ training camp on a professional tryout offer. It’s not often that a veteran of 800-and-some NHL games feels pressure to be sharp as a tack during the first practice of the season, but that’s life on a PTO.
“If you don’t show up and perform, they’re not tied to you so you know it will be, ‘Good luck, so long,’ ” Barrie said. “It’s definitely a different situation than I’ve been in the past, but you approach it the same way. I’ve worked hard all summer and have a good opportunity ahead of me. I know I’m a good player and I know I have some game left in me, so just go and try to showcase that.
“You just want to show up every day and show to them that you want it and you’re the guy for the job.”
While the Flames already seem to have a surplus of depth defencemen, it’s not far-fetched to think Barrie could secure a contract offer — and even a spot in the opening-night lineup.
“Whether it’s Tyson Barrie, for example, or a young guy that is pushing to make our team, the opportunity is there for you,” stressed Flames bench boss Ryan Huska. “If you can help us win, we’re going to keep you. If that means you’re pushing someone out of a job, then you push someone out of a job. That makes our team better, that’s what we love.”
It’s worth noting Huska and Barrie go way back. They were together for four seasons with the WHL’s Kelowna Rockets, with Huska reminiscing that “we used to play him, like, 35 minutes a night,” including the occasional shift as a forward so he could squeeze some additional ice time.
Barrie has, since then, racked up 809 nights of NHL know-how, spread across stints with the Colorado Avalanche, Toronto Maple Leafs, Edmonton Oilers and Nashville Predators.
He is one of only 10 active blue-liners with 500-plus career points, including more than 200 on the power-play. He’s done enough quarterbacking that Dave Dickenson might also be interested.
“(Huska) just told me, ‘Come in and do what you do,’ ” said Barrie, who has averaged about 21 minutes per night at the highest level.
“I think just to be Tyson, that’s probably the biggest thing,” Huska echoed. “He would probably tell you, I would assume, that he hasn’t been happy with his last couple of years (in Nashville). But he’s a guy that has played over 800 games in the NHL. He knows how to play the game, and he has a special talent in regards to working on the power-play.
“And I think he’s come back now and he’s energized. When you go through a summer and you’re not able to find a contract and you come on a PTO, I think 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 that he is going to push really hard to earn a spot on this team.”
Because as much as Barrie is enjoying those deep sleeps at the hotel, he’d love to be able to call his wife and confirm that the whole family is moving to Calgary.
“Hopefully I can let them know sooner than later,” he nodded.
Barrie, a right-handed shot, won’t be judged solely on his performance in practices and his impact in exhibition contests.
For the staff at the Saddledome, a big part of the appeal is his reputation as a respected teammate and locker-room leader. He has been through a wide range of situations, from cellar-dwelling seasons to deep playoff runs. As he put it: “I know what it’s like to be trying to set the culture, and also I know how quickly it can turn.”
“I think I’ve always, first and foremost, just tried to be a good human being and treat other people with respect,” Barrie said. “It’s nice to hear that’s kind of come through in the stops I’ve been at. I like to have fun and embrace the lighter side of the game, keep it loose and have fun with the guys, but also you have to be a pro.”
ICE CHIPS: Notable line combinations from Thursday’s camp sessions — Martin Pospisil between Jonathan Huberdeau and Anthony Mantha; Nazem Kadri, the Flames’ leading point-producer last season, with a pair of proven marksmen on his flanks in Andrei Kuzmenko and Yegor Sharangovich; Connor Zary working the wing alongside captain Mikael Backlund and Blake Coleman …. Kevin Bahl didn’t skate on Day 1. The 24-year-old defenceman, acquired as part of the Jacob Markstrom trade and earmarked for a Top-4 role, is officially day-to-day with a lower-body injury.