3 contenders who must talk to the Sabres about Erik Johnson
The Sabres may jump back into playoff contention this season, but it doesn’t mean they need to keep all their current players, like veteran Erik Johnson.
While the Sabres no longer have Mattias Samuelsson for the season and Owen Power remains out with an upper-body injury, it doesn’t mean they need to hang onto defenseman Erik Johnson. Bringing the 17-year veteran to the City of Good Neighbors made sense in July 2023, but with such a turbulent season to date and with plenty of blueliners in the system on one-way contracts, it could lead Buffalo to sell Johnson to a contender.
While potential trade candidates like Casey Mittelstadt or even Victor Olofsson may warrant better returns than Johnson, there will be no shortage of teams calling for his services should they look to acquire one more seasoned veteran on the blue line or a potential leader in the locker room.
Teams figuring to be serious playoff contenders on the younger end of the NHL would be perfect fits for Johnson. And better yet, all three teams listed below would have something of value to give the Sabres should they open negotiations for the 35-year-old. Again, you won’t see a blockbuster, but Buffalo remains a young team that can land a high-potential young asset.
Erik Johnson’s experience, leadership, will entice teams to call the Sabres
On the ice, Johnson’s value has diminished, evidenced by healthy scratches, a career-low 14:06 average time on the ice, and his overall inability to help the Sabres move the puck into the offensive zone.
This doesn’t mean Johnson wouldn’t be a good fit for the following teams, as they will all look for skaters at the deadline who will improve their on-ice product. Johnson would slide in and play a sound role regardless of where he lands should the Sabres move him. But that value would extend to the locker room, where he will provide a veteran voice when things don’t go so smoothly.
So, who would make incredible fits for Johnson if Buffalo sells at the deadline? Here are three teams whose front offices might just call up general manager Kevyn Adams.
Johnson may rediscover his game with the New Jersey Devils
The New Jersey Devils are currently the sixth-youngest team in hockey and one that needs to make up ground in the Eastern Conference to snag back-to-back playoff berths. That said, they are a perfect team for Johnson to come in and help captains Nico Hischier, Jack Hughes, and Ondrej Palat take charge of the team’s current situation, which sees them a few points outside of a wild card.
Johnson would also add yet another layer of physicality to the Devils and perhaps he would even revert into the player he was during his last season with the Colorado Avalanche if he joined such a high-scoring team.
During his final year with the Avs, Johnson was helping steer the puck out of the defensive zone at even strength and 5-on-5, something we haven’t seen much of in Buffalo. Given the inconsistent goaltending in New Jersey amidst their high-octane offense, Newark could be a perfect fit for the veteran.
Devils fans would love to see their team land a big name that can stick around for a while, like Noah Hanifin, but Hanifin would also demand a significant increase in salary when a team looks to re-sign him, so that could be off the table thanks to Jersey’s current cap space. Therefore, Johnson makes for an incredible stopgap as far as the remainder of this season goes.
Vancouver Canucks would benefit well from a voice like Johnson’s
The Vancouver Canucks weren’t supposed to sit 10 points ahead of the Vegas Golden Knights at this stage in the season, let alone pacing the Pacific Division. But this relatively young hockey team with zero experience in the postseason as a group continues to prove us wrong despite their recent regression in February.
While Vancouver has proven throughout most of the season that they can beat anyone, sound veteran leadership is something they continue to lack. The Canucks have just six players between 30 and 34, and if the Sabres traded Johnson to Vancouver, he would instantly become the veteran voice in the locker room at a time when contending teams will give it their all to land the best possible playoff spot.
Vancouver could also use another blueliner or at least someone to help defensively, something we saw become more obvious over their recent three-game skid when they allowed nearly six goals per game. However, this Canucks team still has a solid amount of talent and experience on the blue line, so it’s not like Johnson needs to come in and be a huge difference-maker.
Put Johnson onto the third line and let him become yet another big hitter for this physical Canucks team, and that alone will let him show his value on the ice.
New York Rangers goaltenders would get some insurance from Johnson
The New York Rangers aren’t one of the youngest teams in the league, and despite enjoying yet another dominant regular season, their top goaltender, Igor Shesterkin, has yet to rediscover what made him such a dynamic player over the previous three years. Luckily for the Rangers, their backup/1B Jonathan Quick has had a good year, but they need to find a way to continually keep pressure off of Shesterkin should they keep rolling with him as the primary.
As it stands, Shesterkin is facing 28.6 shots on net per game, a number that the Rangers could stand to cut before the playoff race is in full force. New York already has a sound rotation that can routinely block shots, but given Shesterkin’s struggles, Johnson makes for a great addition on the third pairing or even in a rotational role to stop a few more of those pucks from reaching the net.
If Shesterkin finds his game and the Rangers call the Sabres for Johnson, then it would make for an ideal scenario for a franchise that hasn’t won a Cup in three decades. And best yet, Buffalo could insert Johnson in a trade package for a player who can use a change of scenery like Kaapo Kakko.
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(Statistics provided by Hockey-Reference as of February 21st)