Ivan Barbashev Brings Golden Knights ‘Exactly’ What They Need

Move over Ben Hutton, there is a new Barbie in town as the Vegas Golden Knights traded for forward Ivan Barbashev. The VGK sent prospect Zach Dean to the St. Louis Blues in exchange for the 27-year-old Russian forward on Sunday.

A sizy two-way power forward, Barbashev should help the Golden Knight's offense that is still without Mark Stone. This season the seven-year NHL veteran has scored 10 goals and 19 assists for 29 points in 59 games. 

"We are really confident that we know what we are getting. We think that Ivan will bring us physically to our lineup. He brings a physical dimension, is very adept in puck battles, getting shots from the slot, puck recoveries, and making plays from below the goal line," said general manager Kelly McCrimmon.

McCrimmon mentioned that the Golden Knights have been in on Barbashev for a while. Leading up to this deal, the VGK sent scouts to view Blues games 45 times. They also consulted Alex Pietrangelo, who won a Stanley Cup with Barbashev on the 2019 St. Louis Blues.

"Ivan is exactly the type of player we need and he's different to what we have. It broadens the skillset of our roster. He definitely gets to the inside, he plays a hard game, he kills penalties, and he's a versatile player," said McCrimmon.

Barbashev is in the final year of a two-year deal with an annual cap hit of $2.25 million. The Golden Knights have the available cap space as Mark Stone is currently on LTIR. McCrimmon mentioned that an extension could be possible with Barbashev and the Golden Knights.

"We will see how that goes. I think it is a possibility, he is the right age at 27 years old going to free agency… we have not spoken to Ivan at this time about it. But in speaking with Ivan today he was tremendously excited to be traded to Vegas," said McCrimmon.

As for Stone, who has back surgery on Jan. 31st, his status remains uncertain.

"He had surgery on Jan. 31st so we are closing in on a month. It's still too early for anyone to be able to predict with any certainty what a timeline would look like," McCrimmon added.

The Golden Knights will play the Colorado Avalanche tonight in Denver at 6:30 p.m. No. 49 Ivan Barbashev should join the team and we will get a look at where head coach Bruce Cassidy will use his new player.

We still have four days until the NHL Trade Deadline, and McCrimmon mentioned that if another deal presented itself, the VGK would pull the trigger.

"You continue to work. If opportunities present themselves we still have time to act on that. We have got cap space to be available to add if the right deal presents itself to make the team better," said McCrimmon.