Golden Knights sign Ivan Barbashev to 5-year, $25 million extension

In the immediate aftermath of dealing away Reilly Smith to clear cap room, the Vegas Golden Knights have extended Ivan Barbashev on a five-year deal worth $5 million per season.

Barbashev scored 16 goals and produced 45 points in 2022-23, but it's his work in the playoffs that had him looking like a top free agent before Vegas locked him up.

The 27-year-old winger skated on the Golden Knights' first line during their championship run, producing 18 points in 22 games and authoring a number of highlight-reel hits along the way.

The Golden Knights' interest in retaining Barbashev is not surprising, but the fact they were able to secure him on this deal is. In a weak free agent pool, the Russian's youth, physicality, and offensive ability set him apart.

If the winger had been dead set on maximizing his earning potential, he likely could've landed a larger contract.

While Vegas will be thrilled to have Barbashev on a relatively inexpensive deal, the team has now spent all of the money it saved by moving Smith, and its remaining cap space is down to $2.687 million.

The Golden Knights were willing to limit their flexibility to get this done, and it's not difficult to see why, considering Barbashev's clear fit with the team after coming over in a midseason trade with the St. Louis Blues.

In 45 games with Vegas, including both the regular season and playoffs, Barbashev scored 13 goals and produced 34 points. His 0.76 points per game with the team was well above his career standard (0.45) and even topped his career year in 2021-22 (0.74).

Barbashev spent the first five years of his career as a bottom-six player for the Blues before that breakout 60-point campaign. The Golden Knights hope that he can rise to that level of production once again, but he might not have to in order to justify his reasonable extension.