Organizations put a lot of value on players with success on their resumes, and to that end, one thing that New Jersey really likes about it's power forward of the future, is that he knows how to win.
Barry Tallackson was a key part of back to back Frozen Four champions at Minnesota, and can bring that attitude to Jersey, which has hung three Stanley Cup banners in the Meadowlands rafters.
He also brings a load of talent and the size to make it count. Such has been the case in Tallackson's first full pro season.
Tallackson’s solid offensive touch in Albany while managing to be a plus player on a sub-.500 River Rats squad, shows that this future Devil knows how to fill his role even when the rest of the pieces of the puzzle aren’t necessarily fitting together.
"He's a really exciting player," said Albany coach Robbie Ftorek, who had Tallackson for a handful of games at the end of last season. "He's doing a good job. There's maybe a couple of areas where he's got to shore it up before he gets up to the NHL. But he's got good speed, good hands, and good vision. He's a threat every time he's got the puck."
While not exceptional in any one area, Barry has a lot of general strengths, most of which have undergone some polishing up in Albany.
"I can move the puck a little bit," Tallackson said, "I can play every aspect of the game. This year I said I'm just going to play my game, play like I always have, and it's worked out so far. Just like every other player, it's got to be hard work every single day. If you can do that, day in and day out, you'll be just fine."
- Dan Hickling