Confirmed Signing with Link: [TOR] Leafs sign Alexei Barabanov (1 year, $925k)

[TheKrebsCycle]

I'm sure he must be terrible given roughly 20 teams were after him ^^

 

[Merrrlin]

You do remember Brown was traded to Ottawa last season???? Who says Moore is going anywhere????

I can't figure out what you are saying here. I said they are out, neither is on the team now. Maybe you didn't notice, but Moore now plays for the Kings

 

[Pavel Buchnevich]

This is literally exactly what people said about Mikheyev and he turned out to be an incredible player and a key part of the team.

Were they wrong about how Mikheyev projected? There wasn't a conspiracy to mislabel his game. He did better than expected. It doesn't mean that its anything other than unlikely that the same will happen for other players.

 

[ViewsFromThe6ix]

Were they wrong about how Mikheyev projected? There wasn't a conspiracy to mislabel his game. He did better than expected. It doesn't mean that its anything other than unlikely that the same will happen for other players.

I think what we learned from Mikheyev is nobody knows how these KHL players will translate at the pro level. People thought he might not even make the team.

It was reported that the Leafs have been targeting this guy for several years. I doubt any team would devote that many resources to a player that thought would just be a bit player.

 

[Pavel Buchnevich]

I think what we learned from Mikheyev is nobody knows how these KHL players will translate at the pro level. People thought he might not even make the team.

It was reported that the Leafs have been targeting this guy for several years. I doubt any team would devote that many resources to a player that thought would just be a bit player.

I don't buy this argument. The KHL is not a secret league that nobody has seen before. With all prospects coming to the NHL, you can't be sure of how someone will play in the NHL before they play in the NHL, but I don't think that has anything to do with the league they come from. In fact, I'd say there's more certainty of the outcome coming from the KHL, considering its the next best league and the closest replication of the NHL level there is.

Barabanov is a free asset that has been highly discussed for years playing on the best team outside the NHL. Everyone's been scouting and discussing him for years.

 

[Drew311]

Its a no brainer step gap move and when against the cap you have to take your shots. Only downside is ufa after 2021 so if he does hit can leafs afford in a year?

On to the next Euro/Russian UFA.

 

[Merrrlin]

Like Grigorenko, Kaprizov, Shipachyov, Jaskin, Jensen, Slepyshev, Hartikainen, Sekac etc

Yes it's a real shame the Leafs couldn't nab Russian UFA Kaprizov...

 

[Pyrophorus]

I fully expect my fellow Leafs fans to start pencilling this guy onto the first line. In fact, I’ve already seen it on our boards. Some people never learn.

We’ve already got posters in this thread, who I guarantee have never seen this guy play, saying Barabanov can play up and down the lineup much better than everyone else we’ve got.

Me, I’m fine with the signing. I’m just sick of people acting like just because it’s our team, Mr. run-of-the-mill FA will be something special, or that adding a bottom-6 forward will change anything meaningfully.

We'll see if he's Kontiola, Soshnikov or Mikheyev, put him where ever you want, its all speculation, until he plays.

 

[Funk21]

Girgensens would get 15-20 points. Maybe 25. His best season was 30 and that was in the Sabres tank year. If he’s your 3C I can see 25 points on the Leafs, but he’s usually the Sabres 4LW.

Thanks for the input. The Sabres have had their issues with wingers for the past few years so I take his production with a grain of salt. Can he play C is my biggest question. I think Kap and Barabanov would take some of the pressure off him as they are both decent possession players and defensively responsible. How is he on the Dot?

 

[acrobaticgoalie]

This would be cap hell...

Yes you are right. I just went in and did a rough calculation with that lineup and it would bring us to around 84M if we were to sign Pietrangelo to around 9M. I was just making a point about how the Barabanov signing could potentially help us in other areas.

One of my more realistic targets would be Hamonic. He would address a need for us and be a more stabilizing presence for Rielly or one of our younger offensive defensemen.

 

[acrobaticgoalie]

You forgot Holl and if they are signing Pietrangelo you need to move out Dermott as well. The trouble with all this is you now get paper thin again with your depth and injuries will cause the same issues the Leafs seen this season. I see one of Johnson or KK being moved for a Dman or Dman signing but Pietrangelo is not it. You lost that chance when Muzzin resigned.

Yes I did forget Holl. I honestly don't see us pursuing Pietrangelo that hard unless he is willing to take a discount, which I don't think he will. If we were to sign Hamonic and maybe Gudas or someone similar, that could be some good additions.

 

[MarkusKetterer]

Thanks for the input. The Sabres have had their issues with wingers for the past few years so I take his production with a grain of salt. Can he play C is my biggest question. I think Kap and Barabanov would take some of the pressure off him as they are both decent possession players and defensively responsible. How is he on the Dot?

He’s decent on it. Usually around 50%. Larsson takes all the draws on that line, except for getting booted out. That line (with Okposo) has been the Sabres second best line. He’d be a good get for the Leafs if he comes cheaply enough.

That being said, out of all the free agents the Sabres have this offseason, him and Larsson are the only two that fans want back.

 

[Menzinger]

Were they wrong about how Mikheyev projected? There wasn't a conspiracy to mislabel his game. He did better than expected. It doesn't mean that its anything other than unlikely that the same will happen for other players.

I think its just broadly a fair point that since few people on this forum are qualified (as in likely have never even seen him play a full game) to talk about realistic projections for the player, so overly negative predictions seemingly come off as particularly silly in reteospect

 

[Pavel Buchnevich]

I think its just broadly a fair point that since few people on this forum are qualified (as in likely have never even seen him play a full game) to talk about realistic projections for the player, so overly negative predictions seemingly come off as particularly silly in reteospect

I don't agree, at all. I think there are at least 15-20 people, likely more, who've seen him play plenty, more than most other prospects. I've yet to see anyone who projects this guy to be anything better than a third line forward.

I'm not a Leafs fan or Russian or someone who rates his game highly, but I can say that I've known about this guy for over four years, and have seem him play probably close to 100 games in that span, if not 100 or more. I made his thread in the prospect section nearly four years ago. I hoped the guy would develop into a big talent, a la Panarin or to a lesser extent Gusev, but he hasn't. He was always going to eventually be a guy who came over to the NHL because he was a free asset and he had talent, but his development hasn't developed as I thought he could've.

He's played plenty of visible hockey. He played in the WJC18, WJC20, WCH three times, OG, and he's played his whole career for SKA. Most people who follow prospects closely have seen him play plenty, and as someone who had an interest in watching SKA for years because we had a number of prospects at that team, I've seen him play even more than most.

 

[Cotton]

With Maple Leafs, Free Agent Winger Alexander Barabanov Had ‘Love At First Sight’



He's supposed to be a top 5-10 skater in the KHL and is good along the boards. "makes good players better" which to me sounds like they are hoping for a Mikheyev/Hyman-like worker who can support the offensive guys. He was on a line with Kovalchuk and Ovechkin during the 19' world championships, I imagine filling a Hyman-like roll.

And apparently his offensive dip this year came as a result of a broken hand.

 

[Cotton]

"If you want to know who Barabanov is, you should rewatch the 2018 World Championship. Especially the game between Russia and Canada in the QF. As far as I remember, he had tried to deke someone out at least 5 times. All the attempts were successful - against solid NHL players"

"Worth to add that Barabanov's skating is very much worth to watch. He's a top-10 KHL skater if not top-5. And is very good one on one due to that. He's a beast outskating Ds in the corners or along the boards"

"Barabanov's definitely got what it takes to be a full-time NHL player. He won't be a star, but he could become a great 3rd line player with ability to move up to replace injured guys. His skating is great as well as his work ethics, he's very strong, he's a beast one on one"

- Igor Eronko
Sport-Express' hockey writer / KHL TV sideline reporter / KHL's best journalist award winner

 

[TS Quint]

Yeah I'm sure he skates like a 3 year old and that's why he was so sought after

It was obviously a comment on the "art". That's clearly not a picture.

 

[Knies iT]

Its a no brainer step gap move and when against the cap you have to take your shots. Only downside is ufa after 2021 so if he does hit can leafs afford in a year?

The Leafs could trade their 3LW (Johnsson), insert Barabanov for this season, and then watch him walk in UFA next summer and it wouldn't matter.

The Leafs have this kid named Robertson whose earmarked for that spot as early as this training camp. Just buying time for him to be ready.

 

[Rielly4]

I think what the Leafs learned from Mikheyev is to go after the russians that play a very north american style game. The net drivers and grindy players who might not play the pretty passing outside game that can work well in the KHL. Barabanov seems to fit that mold, we will see if it works out.

 

[Crease Master]

Solid 3rd liners at 900k allow you to spend and improve the club elsewhere. Sorry bud, your take on this ain't it.

Not if the solid 3rd liner is of lesser quality than the players currently filling that position. Is he better than Kappy? Kerfoot? If you're plugging a cheap guy into your lineup to free up cap space for other things he better be as good or better than the player he's replacing or you're just tinkering for the sake of saying you did something. Sorry bud, your crummy attempt at pretending to understand cap flexibility "aint it" as the kids on the short bus say.

Putting a roster together is more than just saying our 3rd line winger makes 900k so he's a good fit for cap flexibility, the guys who play actually have to be better than their opponents on the ice. This guy is a 4th line scrub exactly the same as Malgin. Why we are signing yet another of these turds instead of saving that roster spot for a surprise veteran camp cut next year, or veteran ufa looking for one last run I'll never know.

If he's providing so much flexibility, I'd like to hear some proposals of who he plays with and what gets done with the alleged cap savings he'll provide. This should be good....

 

[mydnyte]

Komorov type player I heard.

He has the name of a bust though

I've heard more like Hyman in regards to winning one on one puck battles

 

[Patmac40]

Not if the solid 3rd liner is of lesser quality than the players currently filling that position. Is he better than Kappy? Kerfoot? If you're plugging a cheap guy into your lineup to free up cap space for other things he better be as good or better than the player he's replacing or you're just tinkering for the sake of saying you did something. Sorry bud, your crummy attempt at pretending to understand cap flexibility "aint it" as the kids on the short bus say.

Putting a roster together is more than just saying our 3rd line winger makes 900k so he's a good fit for cap flexibility, the guys who play actually have to be better than their opponents on the ice. This guy is a 4th line scrub exactly the same as Malgin. Why we are signing yet another of these turds instead of saving that roster spot for a surprise veteran camp cut next year, or veteran ufa looking for one last run I'll never know.

If he's providing so much flexibility, I'd like to hear some proposals of who he plays with and what gets done with the alleged cap savings he'll provide. This should be good....

Barabanov plays a much heavier game than Malgin and is a lot more useful off the cycle and below the hashmarks due to his strength on the puck. Malgin has a lot of offensive skill and Barabanov does too but the fact that they are close in height is the only close comparison. Their playstyles are not the same.

You've had enough people tell you how he'd fit in the lineup in this thread alone so I'll let you walk back through your replies and figure that part out.

 

[acrobaticgoalie]

Not if the solid 3rd liner is of lesser quality than the players currently filling that position. Is he better than Kappy? Kerfoot? If you're plugging a cheap guy into your lineup to free up cap space for other things he better be as good or better than the player he's replacing or you're just tinkering for the sake of saying you did something. Sorry bud, your crummy attempt at pretending to understand cap flexibility "aint it" as the kids on the short bus say.

Putting a roster together is more than just saying our 3rd line winger makes 900k so he's a good fit for cap flexibility, the guys who play actually have to be better than their opponents on the ice. This guy is a 4th line scrub exactly the same as Malgin. Why we are signing yet another of these turds instead of saving that roster spot for a surprise veteran camp cut next year, or veteran ufa looking for one last run I'll never know.

If he's providing so much flexibility, I'd like to hear some proposals of who he plays with and what gets done with the alleged cap savings he'll provide. This should be good....

I've already explained this to you. From reports it doesn't look like Barabanov should have much issue fitting in and it looks like a guy like Johnsson is replaceable. There are many D men that are UFA that we can go after. Cap flexibility allows us to do that.

Hamonic
Dillon
Brodie
Demelo
Edmundson
Bouwmeester (health)
Gudas
Pysyk
Braun

All guys who could help stabilize our offensive D men and fill a need for the Leafs. They should be better defensively than the likes of Barrie and Ceci

 

[Crease Master]

I've already explained this to you. From reports it doesn't look like Barabanov should have much issue fitting in and it looks like a guy like Johnsson is replaceable. There are many D men that are UFA that we can go after. Cap flexibility allows us to do that.

Hamonic
Dillon
Brodie
Demelo
Edmundson
Bouwmeester (health)
Gudas
Pysyk
Braun

All guys who could help stabilize our offensive D men and fill a need for the Leafs. They should be better defensively than the likes of Barrie and Ceci

2.4 million in cap savings gets you exactly zero players on your list. these alleged cap savings aren't even enough cash to get Hainsey back, and yet for that great savings you're risking that some never drafted KHL reject on the back half of his 20's is now all of a sudden going to be able to replace a hard working speed demon who puts up 40 points on a top line. Sure, it could happen and Sparks could be a number one goalie one day with enough support from the organization.

 

[acrobaticgoalie]

2.4 million in cap savings gets you exactly zero players on your list. these alleged cap savings aren't even enough cash to get Hainsey back, and yet for that great savings you're risking that some never drafted KHL reject on the back half of his 20's is now all of a sudden going to be able to replace a hard working speed demon who puts up 40 points on a top line. Sure, it could happen and Sparks could be a number one goalie one day with enough support from the organization.

Mikheyev left the KHL at the age of 25 as well and was a great get for the leafs. Why are you so quick to dismiss a player you've never seen? 20 teams reportedly were after this guy. There must be a reason for it. The guy was said to be a top 10 skater in the KHL, has good puck skills and is a workhorse. Apparently he looked good playing on a line with Ovi and Kuznetsov at the WC. Maybe you should wait for him to actually play some games before you complain about a free asset that cost nothing but a near league minimum salary.

As for what you said about the Dmen I listed. We have Ceci's 4.5M, Barrie's 2.5M, Clarkson and Horton's LTIR contracts coming off the books. Possibly Spezza and Clifford not returning and Kerfoot likely being traded as well. We will have enough cap savings to sign 1 or 2 Dmen.