Details of a Failed Trade Between the Vancouver Canucks and Colorado Avalanche Come to the Surface
Photo credit: Sergei Belski - Imagn Images
A former NHL defenseman and British Columbia native recently opened up about almost being traded to the Vancouver Canucks at the 2019 Entry Draft.
The summer of 2019 was pretty busy for the Vancouver Canucks as then-General Manager Jim Benning tried to do everything in his power to help his team get back to the Stanley Cup Playoffs the following spring.
As soon as the the clock struck 9 a.m. PT on July 1st, Benning got to work and signed a few defenseman including Tyler Myers on a five-year deal, along with Jordie Benn and Oscar Fantenberg, but less than a week prior, there was rumors about a trade involving recently retired defenseman Tyson Barrie, who was a member of the Colorado Avalanche at the time.
The reported trade offer would've seen the Vancouver Canucks give up their 2019 first round pick, which they ultimately used to select Vasily Podkolzin tenth overall, along with forward Jake Virtanen, but nothing ever materialized and in an interview with Sportsnet 650 radio this week, Tyson Barrie opened up about the rumors that would've seen him head to his home province of British Columbia.
Tyson Barrie opens up about almost being traded to Vancouver Canucks in 2019
On Tuesday, Tyson Barrie was a guest on Canucks Central with Dan Riccio and Sat Shah where he gave details about the rumors connecting him with a trade to the Vancouver Canucks six years ago.
According to Barrie, his agent called him while he was in New York City for a bachelor party and informed him that there's a possibility he could be on the move to the Vancouver Canucks.
Barrie added that he was thinking about potentially heading back home to play in front of family and friends in Vancouver, but ultimately the trade never went through and when the Victoria native spoke with then-Avalanche GM Joe Sakic, he was told that nothing ever got close.
"I was actually in New York City at a bachelor party that I'd planned, and we were at a Yankees game, and my phone rang. It was my agent. He goes, Hey, Tyson, oh, you're in New York. I don't usually bother you with this stuff, but there's a chance you're gonna go to the Canucks here at the draft. He's, like, it sounds like it's close, and we won't know until they announced the pick. But stay tuned." Barrie said.
He added, "So I was just watching the Yankees game, thinking I was getting traded to the Canucks, which I was like, you know, obviously I love Colorado, but I kind of knew I was going to get traded. So to be able to go home to Vancouver, in a way, would have been really cool, but obviously didn't materialize. So I talked to Sakic after, and he said it wasn't actually that close, so it kind of shows you the business you're in a little bit."
He added, "So I was just watching the Yankees game, thinking I was getting traded to the Canucks, which I was like, you know, obviously I love Colorado, but I kind of knew I was going to get traded. So to be able to go home to Vancouver, in a way, would have been really cool, but obviously didn't materialize. So I talked to Sakic after, and he said it wasn't actually that close, so it kind of shows you the business you're in a little bit."
The 34-year-old recently called time on his playing career, hanging up the skates after parts of 14 seasons and 822 games in the National Hockey League with five different franchises including three in Canada - Toronto, Edmonton and Calgary.
Barrie said that if he were to end up being traded to the Vancouver Canucks, he thinks he probably would've been able to feel a bit at home and sign an extension with the club too, but on Canada Day, Sakic shipped the blueliner to the Toronto Maple Leafs as part of the package for Nazem Kadri.
"I think, you know, had I ended up in Vancouver, I probably would have been able to step into a bit of an extension and, you know, find a home. But instead, I went to the Maple Leafs on a kind of a one-year, almost tryout, and that didn't go super great. So it just goes to show you, you know where you land and you know who's trading for. You just can kind of alter the trajectory of your career and obviously your life." Barrie said.
Previously on CanucksDaily
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