Egor Barabanov has spent enough time changing uniforms, cities and countries that a new setting barely seems to rattle him anymore.
That steady adjustment was part of the story again at his first Flames Development Camp, where the newest Calgary prospect looked comfortable from the start. The 20-year-old arrived after a big year with the OHL’s Saginaw Spirit, putting up 91 points in 68 games, and he said that production only added to the belief he brought with him.
“It’s my first development camp, so I’m having a lot of fun,” Barabanov said.
“I think I had confidence before the year, but yeah, I had a good year, so I had confidence coming into development camp,” he explained at the last day of camp.
For Barabanov, that ease didn’t come out of nowhere. He left Russia as a teenager to keep chasing hockey in North America, and since then he’s had to keep settling into new places. Junior hockey brought more moves, and now he’s preparing for NCAA hockey at the University of Massachusetts.
That kind of independence has become routine for him.
“I’ve lived at different spots playing junior the last three years and youth hockey before that,” Barabanov said. “It’s come easy for me to acclimate to new spots.”
Even so, he hasn’t lost sight of what he left behind.
“I obviously miss my parents, I miss my family, and I call them almost every day,” he shared.
“But I feel fine living on my own. I’m used to it now.”
Those calls home don’t usually turn into hockey breakdowns.
“We just talk about how my day goes, how their day goes, just regular things.”
This fall brings another change, with Barabanov set to join UMass and link up with fellow Flames prospects Max Curran and Tobias Trejbal. Getting to spend time with them in Calgary has already made that next step feel a little more familiar.
“It’s nice that I’m going to be with them after this as well,” he said.
“It’s nice to meet them before I actually come in there. I’m excited for the year with them.”
His priorities for the season are simple enough.
“My biggest goal is just to develop myself as a player and get better.
“I need to get bigger off the ice, get stronger in the gym, and then translate it onto the ice.”
Barabanov’s value at camp hasn’t been limited to what he’s done on the ice, either. For a prospect group that includes players adjusting to life in North America for the first time, he’s become a useful bridge.
Czechia-born forward Simon Katolicky said one of his biggest hurdles has been language.
“My biggest problem when I came here was understanding English,” Katolicky explained.
“When the coaches were speaking, there were some words I didn’t really understand, so I needed to ask one more time.”
Barabanov has been helping him through it, both as a teammate and as a roommate during camp.
“In this camp I’m talking with Egor Barabanov,” Katolicky said. “He’s from Russia. He played here for like seven years, so he speaks English fluently and he translates for me also.”
The two have clicked quickly.
“Probably him,” Katolicky said when asked who he’s connected with most.
Barabanov laughed off the idea that he’s doing anything special.
“It’s hard to translate,” he said, chuckling.
“I try to translate a couple of things when I can, but we still speak different languages.”
Still, he knows the value of that help firsthand. He’s been the newcomer before, the one trying to figure out a new place, a new language and a new routine. That’s why the small stuff matters.
“We come from different cultures, but we still talk about things we do at home in the summer and stuff like that. It’s fun.”
And when asked whether his own path has helped him understand what Katolicky is dealing with, Barabanov didn’t need long to answer.
“Yeah, for sure, I try to help him with what I can help him with.”
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