Riley Barber (born February 7, 1994) is an American professional

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an Ice rink, ice skating rink with Ice hockey rink, lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two o ...

forward Forward is a relative direction, the opposite of backward. Forward may also refer to: People * Forward (surname) Sports * Forward (association football) * Forward (basketball), including: ** Point forward ** Power forward (basketball) ** Sm ...

who is currently under contract with the

Dallas Stars The Dallas Stars are a professional ice hockey team based in Dallas. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division (NHL), Central Division in the Western Conference (NHL), Western Conference, and were founde ...

of the

National Hockey League The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey sports league, league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranke ...

(NHL). Barber was selected by the

Washington Capitals The Washington Capitals (colloquially known as the Caps) are a professional ice hockey team based in Washington, D.C. The team competes in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference, a ...

in the sixth round (167th overall) of the

2012 NHL Entry Draft The 2012 NHL Entry Draft was the 50th NHL Entry Draft. The draft was held June 22–23, 2012, at Consol Energy Center in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. It was the first time that Pittsburgh hosted the draft since the 1997 NHL Entry Draft. The top ...

. He is the son of former NHL player

Don Barber Donald Frederick Barber (born December 2, 1964) is a Canadian former professional National Hockey League forward. He played in 115 games with the Minnesota North Stars, Winnipeg Jets, Quebec Nordiques, and San Jose Sharks. He scored 25 goals an ...

Playing career

As a youth, Barber played in the 2006 and 2007

Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament The Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament (french: Tournoi international de hockey pee-wee de Québec) is an annual minor ice hockey event in Quebec City. The tournament was founded in 1960 to coincide with the Quebec Winter Carnival, ...

s with the Pittsburgh Hornets, and then the Detroit Red Wings

minor ice hockey Minor hockey is an umbrella term for amateur ice hockey which is played below the junior age level. Players are classified by age, with each age group playing in its own league. The rules, especially as it relates to body contact, vary from c ...

teams. Barber played

college hockey College ice hockey is played principally in the United States and Canada, though leagues exist outside North America. In the United States, competitive "college hockey" refers to ice hockey played between colleges and universities within the g ...

for the

Miami RedHawks The Miami RedHawks are the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I intercollegiate athletic teams that represent Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, United States. Miami is a member of the Mid-American Conference (MAC) East Divis ...

Miami University Miami University (informally Miami of Ohio or simply Miami) is a public research university in Oxford, Ohio. The university was founded in 1809, making it the second-oldest university in Ohio (behind Ohio University, founded in 1804) and the 1 ...

Oxford, Ohio Oxford is a city in Butler County, Ohio, United States. The population was 23,035 at the 2020 census. A college town, Oxford was founded as a home for Miami University and lies in the southwestern portion of the state approximately northwest ...

. In his

freshman A freshman, fresher, first year, or frosh, is a person in the first year at an educational institution, usually a secondary school or at the college and university level, but also in other forms of post-secondary educational institutions. A ...

year, Barber's outstanding play was rewarded with a selection to the 2012–13

Central Collegiate Hockey Association The Central Collegiate Hockey Association (CCHA) is a college athletic conference that participates in the NCAA's Division I as a hockey-only conference. The current CCHA began play in the 2021–22 season; a previous incarnation, which the curr ...

All-Conference First Team. In 40 games, he tallied 15 goals and 24 assists for 39 points and was second in team scoring by then-sophomore

Austin Czarnik Austin Czarnik (born December 12, 1992) is an American professional ice hockey center for the Grand Rapids Griffins of the American Hockey League (AHL) while under contract to the Detroit Red Wings of the National Hockey League (NHL). Undrafted, ...

. On December 22, 2013, during his sophomore season at Miami, Barber was named captain of the

United States men's national junior ice hockey team The United States men's national junior ice hockey team represents the United States at the IIHF World U20 Championship. The team has won 5 world junior championships (2004, 2010, 2013, 2017, 2021). Many talented NHL prospects, such as John Car ...

for the

2014 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships The 2014 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships (formerly called the IIHF U20 World Championship) was the 38th edition of the Ice Hockey World Junior Championship (WJHC), hosted in Malmö, Sweden. The 13,700-seat Malmö Arena was the main venue, ...

. He had been a member of the

2013 File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment ...

United States squad that won gold. On April 17, 2015, Barber chose to forego his senior with Miami and signed a three-year entry-level deal with the Capitals. He was assigned to the Capitals' AHL affiliate, the Hershey Bears. He made his professional debut on October 10, 2015, registering two goals in a 5–1 win over the

Springfield Falcons The Springfield Falcons were a former ice hockey team in the American Hockey League (AHL) and played in Springfield, Massachusetts, at the MassMutual Center. In 2016, the Falcons' franchise was purchased by the National Hockey League (NHL)'s Ari ...

. During the 2016–17 season, on February 24, 2017, Barber made his NHL debut with the Capitals against the

Edmonton Oilers The Edmonton Oilers are a professional ice hockey team based in Edmonton. The Oilers compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference. They play their home games at Rogers Place, which ...

. On December 7, 2018, the Capitals recalled Barber from Hershey after placing

T. J. Oshie Timothy Leif "T. J." Oshie (born December 23, 1986) is an American professional ice hockey right winger for the Washington Capitals of the National Hockey League (NHL). He was selected by the St. Louis Blues in the first round of the 2005 NHL ...

on injured reserve, though he did not play. He led the Bears with 18 points in 20 appearances for the season before being recalled. On July 1, 2019, Barber joined the

Montreal Canadiens The Montreal CanadiensEven in English, the French spelling is always used instead of ''Canadians''. The French spelling of ''Montréal'' is also sometimes used in the English media. (french: link=no, Les Canadiens de Montréal), officially ...

as a free agent, agreeing to a one-year, two-way contract. After participating in the Canadiens training camp, Barber was waived on September 24, 2019. He was reassigned to the Canadiens minor league affiliate,

Laval Rocket The Laval Rocket (french: Rocket de Laval) are a professional ice hockey team playing in the American Hockey League (AHL) as an affiliate of the National Hockey League (NHL)'s Montreal Canadiens. Based in Laval, Quebec, Canada, the Rocket play th ...

, to begin the 2019–20 season. After leading the Rocket in points with 18 (6G, 12A) points in 21 games. The Canadiens decided to recall Barber to the NHL on December 8, 2019. This was his first NHL call-up since playing three NHL games with the Washington Capitals in the 2016–17 season. After playing eight games and registering zero points with the Montreal Canadiens, Barber was sent back to Laval. On February 20, 2020, while with Laval, Barber was traded by the Canadiens along with

Phil Varone Phil Varone (born October 15, 1967) is an American drummer. He is a founding and former member of the band Saigon Kick from 1988–1996 and from 2012–2015. While out of Saigon Kick for several years, some of which Saigon Kick wasn't active ...

to the

Pittsburgh Penguins The Pittsburgh Penguins (colloquially known as the Pens) are a professional ice hockey team based in Pittsburgh. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division of the Eastern Conference, and have play ...

in exchange for

Joseph Blandisi Joseph Blandisi (born July 18, 1994) is a Canadian professional ice hockey forward currently for the Toronto Marlies in the American Hockey League (AHL). He was drafted in the 6th round (162nd overall) by the Colorado Avalanche in the 2012 ...

and Jake Lucchini. He was immediately assigned to join their affiliate, the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins. On October 9, 2020, Barber signed a two-year, two-way contract with the

Detroit Red Wings The Detroit Red Wings (colloquially referred to as the Wings) are a professional ice hockey team based in Detroit. The Red Wings compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NHL), Atlantic Division in the East ...

. On January 12, 2021, the Red Wings assigned Barber to the

Grand Rapids Griffins The Grand Rapids Griffins are a professional hockey team in the American Hockey League (AHL) based in Grand Rapids, Michigan, and play home games at Van Andel Arena. They are the AHL affiliate to the Detroit Red Wings of the National Hockey Lea ...

. On July 14, 2022, Barber signed as a free agent to a one-year, two-way contract with the

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

International

Awards and honors

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Barber, Riley 1994 births Living people American men's ice hockey right wingers Detroit Red Wings players Dubuque Fighting Saints players Grand Rapids Griffins players Hershey Bears players Ice hockey people from Pittsburgh Laval Rocket players Miami RedHawks men's ice hockey players Montreal Canadiens players Texas Stars players USA Hockey National Team Development Program players Washington Capitals draft picks Washington Capitals players Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins players