When Bill Barber gets back to the North Bay area he usually comes for a good time not a long time.
The Hockey Hall of Fame inductee and local icon was back in the area in early June to celebrate the third annual NoahStrong Ball Hockey Tournament and take a look at the significant upgrades to the Bill Barber complex at Callander's community centre named after him.
Barber was also on hand as the community officially re-opened the rink on June 8 showing off those upgrades which included a new concrete foundation for the ice pad.
“It’s an honour to have your name on a structure, and I couldn’t be happier to see what’s going on here,” Barber told BayToday.
“It’s an honour to be at the Noah Strong Ball Hockey Tournament for a great cause.”
See related: Barber pleased with Callander's rink upgrades
The two-time Stanley Cup winner with the Flyers in 1974 and 1975 has spent the past 52 years living in the United States since breaking in with the Flyers in 1972.
His highlight was getting home to celebrate his Mother's 100th birthday.
"I have a cottage out on the south shore of Lake Nipissing and I just come up and spend time with family. It is a big year coming up for my Mother she turned 100 on June 19th and we had a gathering at the Callander Tavern for her," said Barber.
"She is a special lady, five boys. We all played the sport and she's a tough woman. I enjoy being around family, I don't get back here enough and when I do I spend a lot of it with family." said Barber, who turns 72 in early July.
A Senior Advisor for the Flyers and former NHL coach of the year with the Flyers, Barber says he will not attend the NHL Entry Draft with the team at the event this weekend in Las Vegas.
See related: Risk vs. reward as NHL teams assess Russian prospects at camp to dispel concerns entering the draft
However, the Flyers legend still feels the pulse of the organization with the position he shares with former Flyers great Bobby Clarke.
Barber feels a sense of optimism about the Flyers and he believes coach John Tortorella is steering the team in the right direction.
"We are on the rebuild stage here," admitted Barber.
"We are a few years away from being where we want to be as far as a playoff team goes but I give John Tortorella a lot of credit. I worked with John for six years in Tampa Bay when we won the Cup there in 2004. He has done a fabulous job having these young players be made accountable and I think that is important. Our structure has changed and he is a big part of that and I can see nothing but positives as time moves forward."
Barber also feels optimism about some of their Russian prospects such as goaltender Ivan Fedotov, who has taken years to get approval after CSKA Moscow terminated his KHL contract. After inking with the Flyers in May 2022, the 2015 draft pick was taken by authorities to a remote military base in the Arctic Circle for a year of service.
However, the Flyers' top prospect is Russian phenom Matvei Michkov. Flyers got some encouraging news on the weekend as their 2023 first-round pick was released from his KHL contract in what is believed to be a step towards him joining the Flyers in 2024-25.
"He is a highly talented player," said Barber about the Russian prospect who has been compared to Connor Bedard.
"With the Russian players, it is difficult sometimes, even with the big goaltender we have there, we had problems getting him over and they have to serve their time with the military but we will be excited to see him play and he will be a great addition to our team."
