RALEIGH, N.C. – Your typical NHL center usually goes about 6-foot-2/6-foot-3 and weighs in the neighborhood of 200 pounds.
For Monday night’s Game 2 of their series against the Carolina Hurricanes, the Flyers plan on shifting usual left wing Denver Barkey over to center, just as they did midway through Game 1.
Barkey won’t be mistaken for the 6-foot-4, 210-pound Sean Couturier.
In fact, he stands just 5-foot-10 and is generously listed at 171 pounds.
Still, he’s so tenacious along the boards and so fierce in open ice that opponents feel like he goes much bigger than his stats would indicate.
Some draw comparisons between Barkey and Carolina’s own pitbull, Logan Stankoven (5-foot-8, 165 pounds), who scored twice in the opener.
“ ‘Barks’ really moved his feet and hounded the puck,” Tocchet said of the 21-year-old’s performance in Game 1. “That’s what ‘Stanko’ does. When it comes to moving your feet and ‘doggin’ the bone,’ those guys are similar. That’s a pretty good comparison.”
Barkey spent extra time on the ice with possible new linemate Alex Bump after Sunday’s practice. Safe to say the young guys are revved up.
Actually, Barkey spent some time at center in the final game of the regular season against Montreal, so he has that recent experience. Plus he played in the middle back in junior hockey.
“It’s obviously an adjustment,” Barkey said. “It’s something I take pride in my game, someone who can play up and down the lineup, you can trust in all situations, in all different positions.
“I think that’s something I would like to have (be) part of my game. Make sure I know what to do in all positions on the ice. Just be a reliable player who can be trusted to be put out in all situations.”
All the way back to his first year of junior, the Newmarket, Ontario native felt comfortable in the pivot spot.
He gradually gravitated to left wing but center is still in his blood.
“We do enough video,” he said. “Make sure you pay attention. I know what to do if something like that gets thrown at you. Just kind of taking pride in being prepared every day. Make sure you listen to all the video because you never know what’s going to be thrown at you.”
As for comparisons to Stankoven, Barkey doesn’t mind at all.
“He’s a good player,” Barke said. “Similar stature. His shot stands out to me. Gets pucks through, finds lanes. Definitely want to work on being more of a shooting threat. Watching video of him and other small guys in the league might help me down the road.”
Center Noah Cates, who goes 6-foot-2, 194 pounds, believes Barkey has the inner drive to make up for his lack of size.
Cates also played wing early in his career and then made the transition to the middle.
“He’s so smart,” Cates said of Barkey. “Good on the walls. When he has the puck with space in the middle, he obviously makes the right play 99 percent of the time. Making those little plays. If he can do that from the center position, that really adds to him and his team.”
According to Cates, Barkey has the right stuff in his game to overcome any disadvantage from a lack of size.
“My thought is, everyone in this league is posed a different challenge,” Cates said. “Like Stankoven, he can win faceoffs, score goals and defend hard. He might do it differently with the size but I think he can get it done.”
Barkey’s high hockey IQ can also make the transition a bit easier to make. It certainly worked against the Canadiens.
“For him, especially, switching in a playoff game as a rookie, mid-game like that, that takes a lot,” Cates said. “A credit to him, how prepared he is. The stuff he does on the ice, off the ice, he’s a great pro.”
If Barkey is feeling any pressure with this move, it’s hard to detect it from the steady tone in his voice.
“I’ve watched enough video to know what to do out there,” he said. “So I think in those moments, reacting, I know what to do. It’s just going out there and executing the game plan. I wouldn’t say there’s too much pressure.”
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