Avalanche defenseman Tyson Barrie's agent, Don Meehan, was in Denver on Wednesday night attending the match between the Avalanche and Canadiens. It was suspected he was in town to meet with Avalanche General Manager Joe Sakic about a contract extension for Barrie, but Meehan denied this.
"I can't tell you whether we'll have any discussions with Joe because we're simply here to see the players we represent," Meehan said Wednesday morning. "I may or may not see Joe. I don't know what his plans are," according to the Denver Post's Terry Frei.
The 24-year-old defenseman is making $2.6 million in this last year of his contract, and is set to become a restricted free agent on July 1.
"We've had discussions with Joe...," Meehan continued according to Frei. "We have the opportunity of negotiating a contract or have the availability of arbitration. So it will be one of those options at the end of the day. But we have lots of time before we have to make a determination whether we arbitrate or not."
Barrie is enjoying his time with the club, and not focusing on if or when negotiations started. He just wants to stay in the city.
"We're trying to get something done," Barrie said. "I don't know how close or how far it is. I'm just going to do my job on the ice and let them take care of the off-ice stuff. We went for dinner (Tuesday night), but it's just business as usual."
"I love Denver, I love the city, I love the guys. It's a great place to play. In a perfect world, I'd love to be here, so we'll see what happens," he added, according to Frei.
Things might not go so smoothly for the star, as Meehan's agency, Newport Sports Management, has had trouble with the Avalanche in the past. Ryan O'Reilly's agent Pat Morris, also part of the agency, was too aggressive in negotiations, leading to a contract extension failure, and O'Reilly's departure to the Sabres.
"We just view it as business, that's all," Meehan said, in response to his agency's relationship with the Avalanche. "We have a professional camaraderie with Joe that is very good. We will have differences of opinion, but that's fine. We want to be fully open and transparent about a process, and we have a good relationship with Joe. Sometimes we'll agree and sometimes we won't, but that's OK. We've been around too long to take it personal."
He continued by saying he preferred a settlement to arbitration, "[b]ut arbitration sometimes is necessary, and it doesn't mean that it's adversarial," he added. "We're both trying to find a way, assessing all the comparables and trying to find a spot within the industry. I'm not talking about Tyson's situation, but any kind of arbitration where you can have good intentions, be well-intentioned and a good body of research to support your position. Yet there really aren't any definitive comps, so you're depending on an arbitrator to give you a settlement. It doesn't have to be adversarial."
Tyson Barrie has 35 goals and 106 assists with the Avalanche in his career.
