The Montreal Canadiens and general manager Marc Bergevin announced on Monday that they have agreed to terms with Mark Barberio on a two-year contract extension.
The one-way deal, worth $750,000.00 per year, will keep the left-handed defenseman with the big club next season, and is a nice raise over the two-way deal worth $600,000.00 he signed a year ago as a free agent.
#Habs have signed Mark Barberio to two-year, one-way contract worth a total of $1.5 million. Good signing by GM Bergevin. #HabsIO
— Stu Cowan (@StuCowan1) June 13, 2016
Barberio was drafted by the Tampa Bay Lightning in the 6th round of the 2008 NHL draft and spent five seasons with the club and its AHL affiliate before leaving to sign with the Canadiens.
On joining the Habs, the 26-year-old was assigned to the St. John’s IceCaps and impressed with 20 points in 26 games. He was named to the AHL All Star game but was unable to play after being called-up to join the Canadiens.
The Montreal-native tallied two goals and ten points in 30 games in his first season with the big club and became a welcome addition to the injury-riddled roster before suffering a concussion on March 19th in a game against the Buffalo Sabres that ended his season.
The signing is proof that Barberio impressed enough during the season to earn his extension, and his strong defensive play, point totals, 0 +/- rating and 6 PIM placed him higher on the depth chart than other defensive prospects like Joel Hanley and Darren Dietz who also spent time with the Canadiens last season.