Colorado Avalanche Defenseman Tyson Barrie is Worth Defensive Risks

Many fans cite Tyson Barrie’s defensive woes on the Colorado Avalanche as a reason to trade him; however, his defensive risks are worth his offensive output.

I have a lot of faith in Colorado Avalanche defenseman Tyson Barrie. I believe he has the abilities to be a a legitimate top four defenseman if he is surrounded by better talent on the blueline. He is already one of the top offensive defensemen in the entire NHL.

Even if his defensive woes continue, he is still worth his offensive output. Tyson Barrie has an amazing skill set, and all he needs are some better defensemen around him to be more effective.

I’m not saying that his defensive performance should be dependent on the talent around him because that’s not a defenseman you want on your team. However, I am saying that Tyson Barrie would be a much more effective offensive blueliner if he had a better cast of two-way and defensive defensemen around him.

Essentially, Tyson Barrie is being relied upon to do too much in his own end currently. If he’s given the opportunity to be more offensively creative, and not take as many defensive zone starts, then he could be a real boon for the Avs.

Regardless, I believe the Avs would be crazy to trade him. What they should be doing instead is focusing on surrounding him with better talent.

Tyson Barrie is a Premiere Offensive Defenseman

Since the 2013-14 season only 13 defensemen in the NHL have scored more points than Tyson Barrie. Their names include: Erik Karlsson, Brent Burns, Duncan Keith, Shea Weber and Oliver Ekman-Larsson. They’ve also averaged 308 games per season between the thirteen of them. Tyson Barrie has played 296 games during that time frame.

The point is, Barrie is among the elite in point production as a defenseman in the last four years. Why trade a player with that kind of production? It just doesn’t make any sense.

What Joe Sakic should be doing is trying to find a great partner that can skate with him. Andrei Mironov may be that guy, but I doubt it. Nikita Zadorov could develop into that kind of player, but you probably want him playing on your top pairing instead.

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The Avs need to find a player who can play in the top four on Barrie’s pairing. Hopefully that player comes along in a Matt Duchene trade.

Don’t forget that Tyson Barrie owned a 50 percent even Corsi-for percentage this season. Unfortunately, he also had 51 giveaways this year. He knows how to push the play, and he’s not bad at holding it in the zone, but he is certainly a liability in his own end.

However, if he were surrounded by some more reliable defensive talent, he would certainly be a good player for the Avs to keep on their team.

Conclusion

Changes are coming this offseason, that much is clear. However, Tyson Barrie should not be one of the players subjected to those changes. Sakic needs to build around the young talent he has, and especially on the blueline.

Next: Avs Should Take a Flyer on Petrus Palmu in 2017 NHL Draft

Tyson Barrie is worth the risks folks. He puts up points in a hurry, is a clutch performer when the game is on the line and is a great quarterback on the power play.

Even in a down year, he still put up 38 points. He will return to form during the 2017-18 season, and Avalanche fans will be glad to still have him on the team.

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