NEW YORK - Madison Square Garden means plenty to Denver Barkey, and not just because it’s one of the sport’s most recognizable buildings.
For the Flyers forward, Thursday’s visit to the Rangers came with a family layer that makes the rink feel even bigger. Barkey made his NHL debut at MSG last season, and his late grandfather, Randy Legge, also skated there during his own NHL career with the Rangers in 1972-73.
Legge died on Dec. 11, 2023, but Barkey said the memories of his grandfather still travel with him every time he comes back to the building.
“He was always a big fan of mine, came to all my games growing up,” Barkey said Thursday from the visiting locker room at Madison Square Garden. “When I was, like, 6, 7 years old, the team I was on, he’d always wear the hat to every game and it said, ‘Grandpa,’ with my number on the side of it.
Just a huge fan of mine. I always looked up to him, wanted to be like him.”
Thursday’s game against the Rangers was Barkey’s third trip to Madison Square Garden, and he called the place “a meaningful place.”
“It’s exciting to be back here,” the 21-year-old said. “There’s history here with my grandpa, too, so it’s a meaningful place.”
The emotional weight of his first NHL game there last December still stands out for Barkey and his family. Legge was the father of Barkey’s mother Devin, and Barkey said making his debut in the same arena where his grandfather once played felt like a full-circle moment.
“For me to be able to make my debut here, for him watching above,” Barkey said, “it was kind of a full circle moment for my whole family when I came here for my first game.”
His mother felt it, too. Barkey said she was overwhelmed during his rookie lap in warmups.
“She admitted it, she was in tears,” Barkey said with a smile. “It was just such a cool moment for all of us. I’m sure they’ll be thinking about him tonight again when we’re playing.”
Barkey’s path with the Flyers has grown well beyond that initial call-up. He spent more than half of last season with the club and appeared in all 10 playoff games after originally being expected to stay up only for a short stretch. Rick Tocchet said Barkey earned that longer look with the way he plays.
“He’s a really intelligent guy,” Tocchet said Thursday. “He’s a dog-on-the-bone type of player, that’s when he’s at his best, just let him go and chase down pucks.
“He’s really good at entering the zone and then turning it up with a play, controlling the play. He doesn’t just throw it away. He’s one of our better players when it comes to that.”
Barkey said he was still taking in the moment of being back at the Garden, the place where his NHL dream first became real.
“I was kind of thinking about it this morning, it’s pretty crazy to think that this is where I made my debut,” he said. “You look forward to that your whole life.”
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