The VGK Must Retain Ivan Barbashev At All Costs
After winning Lord Stanley in 2023, what does the pathway toward repeating look like for the Vegas Golden Knights? If you checked out the VGK cap sheet, it’s pretty straightforward. What do the Knights do at goalie and what’s it going to take to retain Ivan Barbashev?
We have already talked about the goalie situation for the Knights at length. I’ll drop that link for you here.
Someone tell Barbashev no state tax! I’ve been screaming it over and over in the company Slack. It’s still unclear how much the cap will go up next season. The more the merrier for the VGK. The important part is someone needs to get in Barby’s ear and tell him that he will keep more of his earnings in Vegas compared to other locations. Make sure he really understands it because Vegas cannot afford to lose this player.
Barbashev, 27, was acquired at the trade deadline via St. Louis for prospect Zach Dean. It’s safe to say that’s a trade Vegas is willing to make over again. Barby posted 18 points in 22 playoff games for Vegas and was absolutely vital toward the Cup run. More importantly, he’s the baddest MFer on the ice at all times.
If you watch any of the press conferences, Jack Eichel kinda hinted at this at one of them. Barbashev simply does things that he and Jonathan Marchessault don’t. Barbashev wins the board battles and he’s a total tank on the ice. Has anyone seen the hits he’s been laying out this postseason?
That was the barbarian Radko Gudas. I’m sure Gudas has been hit hard before but like this? On a reverse hit where Gudas went to initiate the contact? Barbashev is a bad, bad man and he will snatch your soul.
Since Vegas acquired Barby he’s mostly been tasked with first-line duties next to Eichel and Marchessault. Sometimes you’re just one injury away from being a better hockey team. Getting rid of the glass man Max Pacioretty for a player who’s deemed worse made Vegas better. There is just no other way to put it. It’s the other things that add up.
It also needs to be mentioned that the move to wing really helped Barbashev’s game. Centermen just have way more responsibility as a 200-foot player. With Eichel running the line, Barbashev doesn’t need to be the driver of an offense. He doesn’t need to be responsible for shutting down other elite centers. He can worry about mucking up the game and good things seem to follow.
Ivan Barbashev, acquired by VGK, is a playmaking middle-six forward who shoots the puck very rarely but occasionally shows a nice scoring touch. Defensive issues limit his effectiveness as a centre. #VegasBorn pic.twitter.com/UCfgc1b8be
— JFresh (@JFreshHockey) February 26, 2023
You can see by the metrics that Barbashev was a disaster defensively with St. Louis playing center. He was also losing faceoffs but in Vegas, he really only does that in a pinch if Eichel gets waved out of the circle. However, it works for Vegas considering that isn’t a bad second option to take one. Playing wing has allowed Barbashev to worry about his pass and finishing rather than being a shutdown guy. The hits also help too.
Vegas is going to have around $3.5 million to work with this offseason. Robin Lehner is going to have to be traded to increase the cap space. The recruiting measures need to be in full force and there will be plenty of competition from other suitors. Especially after these playoffs.
No state tax. Look at the weather. How about the new facilities? Get to play for a great team that sparked the best play of his career. Also, have a guy like Alex Pietrangelo in the locker room who also won a Cup with St. Louis. Someone needs to be texting Barby constantly. For a team that brings back virtually the entire team next year, keeping Ivan Barbashev in-house has to be priority number one this offseason.
