The Avalanche, mired in a 4-24-2 skid in its past 30 games, Thursday claimed defenseman Mark Barberio on waivers from the Montreal Canadiens and placed defenseman Eric Gelinas on waivers.
Barberio, 26, has no goals and four assists and is a plus-1 in 26 games with the Canadiens this season, averaging 15:07 of ice time. He is a 6-foot-1, 207-pound left shot who was Tampa Bay’s fifth pick in the 2008 draft, after his second of four seasons in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League.
He spent most of his first three pro seasons in the AHL, then was with the Lightning for two seasons before signing a one-year, $600,000 deal with the Canadiens as a free agent on July 1, 2015.