ST. LOUIS – Justin Barron's hockey world had just taken a twist that the 24-year-old wasn't expecting.
He was fully committed and in the moment with the Nashville Predators, right in the thick of training camp.
Then, things changed, and the defenseman was put on waivers on Sept. 26.
The next 24 hours would be filled with uncertainty: would be be claimed by another NHL team; is he heading to Milwaukee of the American Hockey League, or do the Predators keep him?
The St. Louis Blues jumped in. They had a rash of injuries and needing help on their blue line.
"I just wanted to come in and obviously a little bit of a clean slate," Barron said after becoming the latest Blues D-man to put up four points , which is a career-high on a goal and three assists Thursday in a 6-2 win over the Vegas Golden Knights. "Obviously there's been some injuries here and just try to come into the lineup and prove myself."
Barron, who carries a $1.575 million cap hit in the final year of his contract before becoming a restricted free agent, had plenty of time to think about things on his drive to St. Louis from Nashville, up I-24 West, then I-57 North to I-64 West.
"Obviously it's a whirlwind, your head's spinning a little bit," Barron said. "Talked to my parents, talked to my brother (Morgan, a center for the Winnipeg Jets). A bunch of the guys reached out here. I talked to a couple of them on the way up that I already knew. It was obviously a whirlwind, but like I said, I tried to come in with an open mind and it was a fresh start, a little bit of a fresh opportunity for me. Just trying to make the most of it."
Make the most of it he has most certainly done, and in doing so, it's pushed 2023 first-round pick Theo Lindstein out of the lineup, so much so, that the Blues assigned the 21-year-old to Springfield of the American Hockey League after the game Thursday.
Blues winger Dylan Holloway was one of those players Barron spoke to.
"I actually played with JB growing up a little bit," Holloway said. "... He was such a stud back then, he's a stud now. It was a great pickup for us. He played so good tonight. I was really happy to see him have a big night like that."
But Barron didn't play right away, needing to get acclimated to the Blues' system, which seems to fit quite nicely for the first-round pick (No. 25) in the 2020 NHL Draft.
But once he jumped into the lineup in the fourth game, the home opener against the San Jose Sharks on Oct. 8, Barron hasn't come out of the lineup.
"I feel good," said Barron, who has a goal and four assists in seven games. "I've feel like I'm just trying to build my game since I got here. The guys on the team have helped me a lot, just get comfortable. I feel like I'm a part of this team. It was a good, full effort for our team tonight to play a full 60 minutes here at home."
Barron was impactful in the game even before he scored a first-period goal with a quality scoring chance or two, with the puck on his stick quite a bit. But he jumped into the hole after recent call-ups Aleksanteri Kaskimaki and Otto Stenberg forechecked the puck back before Kaskimaki hit Barron coming down the slot. He beat Adin Hill by whipping in a shot from the right circle off the far post and in to give the Blues a 2-0 lead at 13:49 of the first period:
"I'm not even sure if this was his best game," Blues coach Jim Montgomery said. "He got points and the puck went in, but every game he seems to have four or five attempts from the blue line. He's just done a really good job in all three zones. He hasn't over-complicated the game, makes the simple play, understands how we want to play. So credit to him because he's really taken advantage of his opportunity."
Thursday was a season-high for Barron in Minutes at 20:23, all at even strength; he's averaging 16:28 on the season and is a plus-7 after being a plus-4 on Thursday. He's been skating the past couple games on the top pairing with Philip Broberg on his natural right side after getting into the lineup with Colton Parayko playing his offside on the left.
None of it matters; he's playing well these days, right or left.
"Obviously it showed up for me on the scoresheet (Thursday), but it really felt like everyone on the team played really well tonight," Barron said. 'It felt like one of the first games since I've gotten here that we played a full 60 minutes. I think a ton of guys played really well tonight.
"I think sometimes you can get lucky with some opportunities, someone believing in you. I think at a certain point, it's up to you to try and make the most of it and really grab that opportunity. That's what I'm trying to do here."
The Blues play a more aggressive style with their defensemen allowing them to jump in and pinch in the offensive zone, and as an offensive defenseman, Barron is quite adept to that, which allows him to have the success he's having.
When Barron is on the ice, the Blues have scored seven goals for and two against at 5-on-5, according to naturalstattrick.com .
"I think it's just trying to play free," Barron said. "One thing I really like about the team here is kind of the style they play with how aggressive the D are in the offensive zone. The D are always involved in the rush, and I think that fits my game pretty well with my skating. I think that part also made the transition a bit easier for me."
Montgomery said, "Yeah, I mean, outside of your Crosbys, your Brett Hulls, you know, most people it takes the right fit. The right city sometimes, the right culture, the right teammates, the right linemates. For him, I don't know exactly what it is, but certainly he's really comfortable. He seems comfortable since the first practice."
Who knows how long this will last, or what will happen when the Blues get Logan Mailloux (hand injury) and/or Tyler Tucker (knee injury) back. Can Barron's hot run continue? It will certainly make for some interesting roster decisions. But in the meantime, the Blues plan on riding what Barron can give them and cross that bridge when it's necessary.
And Barron will still live day by day and hope for the best.
"I'm still in the hotel. It's been good," Barron said. "There's a couple other guys in there with me, which is nice. We've done a little car-pooling and stuff. Been going to dinners with some of the guys, it's been great."
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