Article: Is Marcus Johansson A Wild Card Or A Sunk Cost?

[Adam Overby]

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[OldDutchChip]

you ask him to waive his NTC and waive him or send him back for 3rd stint in Washington (attach a pick for sweetener) 

but he CANNOT be in the lineup this year

[Sam]

I didn’t read the article yet, but I’m willing to bet the consensus here is that he’s a sunk cost.

[Citizen Strife]

Yurov decided to stay in Russia.  Johansson is a warm body at this point, but it's 1 year at $2m.  Ride it out and see if Yurov actually wants to replace him next year.

[Lovehockey]

Johansson is not an ideal player but this is last year and just 2 mil. Wild has a lot of other contracts to be concerned about (Hartman, Foligno, Spurgeon just naming the few). And by the way he still has 30 points. If u want him to be 40 plus point player good luck to find this type of guy for 2 mil (look at Hartman)

[OldDutchChip]

49 minutes ago, Citizen Strife said:

Yurov decided to stay in Russia.  Johansson is a warm body at this point, but it's 1 year at $2m.  Ride it out and see if Yurov actually wants to replace him next year.

why would you want to keep MJ playing top 6 role this year? this is insane! 

4 minutes ago, Lovehockey said:

Johansson is not an ideal player but this is last year and just 2 mil. Wild has a lot of other contracts to be concerned about (Hartman, Foligno, Spurgeon just naming the few). And by the way he still has 30 points. If u want him to be 40 plus point player good luck to find this type of guy for 2 mil (look at Hartman)

this is a huge year for us, to say MJ gets one of the top 6 spots is a fireable offense! 

BILLY do NOT do what these commentators are saying here. MJ must be gone as soon as possible. him and freddy boy.  

[Protec]

18 minutes ago, Lovehockey said:

Johansson is not an ideal player but this is last year and just 2 mil. Wild has a lot of other contracts to be concerned about (Hartman, Foligno, Spurgeon just naming the few). And by the way he still has 30 points. If u want him to be 40 plus point player good luck to find this type of guy for 2 mil (look at Hartman)

You're right except when you factor NoJo costing the Wild goals against or diminished morale. I would say ODC is right with the eye test. He just needs to be gone. Like a Parise/Suter scenario. Rotten apple analogy. That guy on the 2nd line turns them into a non-factor for the most part.

At this point they're kinda stuck with him. I'd bury him as a 13th forward and begin building the chemistry with new, younger players who will takeover those roles driving play for their lines. 

NoJo is the clearest case of Guerin seeing something weird and picking the wrong guy to sign after that Dallas series. He could have got Pius Suter or Tomas Nosek for less money. There were other options. 

Good article. Realistic. Hopefully all the suggestions of disgruntled prospects, old vets, and psych-case players don't come true. MN already has an undersized-abundance and less money than anyone. Please don't do anything foolish this off-season.

[Pewterschmidt]

Sunk cost.  Now just when you count out ole Barrel Breezers up comes a contract year and he finds a pulse.  Watch him be a legit top 6 players for half the games (best case scenario).  I can't believe there will be a market value for nojo and the league has enough tape on this noodle to know better, but if he can be dealt at deadline please do that Guerin&Co.  We will all meet to burn his jersey after he get's traded

[Citizen Strife]

Where did I say keep him in Top 6?  I'm just saying buying out a year or half year adds more to the tab that we're gonna get rid of anyway.

[MrCheatachu]

Quote

Since Johansson has one year left on his deal, the Wild would be responsible for a cap hit spread over two seasons of $1.333 million. That would save the Wild only $666,000. If they send him to the AHL, his minor league salary is still $2 million.

That's not the entire picture if they send him to the AHL.  His paycheck will still be $2M next season (if he's skating in Iowa) but the buried threshold for 2024-2025 season is going to be $375k, which means the only part of his $2M that is going to hit the cap (if he is in the AHL) is $2M - $375k - $775k (league min) = $850K.

I dont know why you would buy out a player for $666k for TWO seasons when you can bury them in the AHL for $850k for one seasons...

$666k...OMG GUYS, MOJO IS THE DEVIL 

[Dean]

I don’t get why people think we have another year to waste on these Billy misfits . A. Kappy will be gone if we do and B Billy isn’t going to make a playoff contender in next years free agency. That crap doesn’t happen overnight. So how many more years does Billy get to do nothing?  He needs to stop giving lazy friends contracts and get playoff character players . Guys that actually want to show up and compete for a cup. We aren’t coming out of the buyouts in a strong position if your superstar won’t resign.  Get kappy signed by doing good gm work. Enough of the pr of hopes and dreams. Put the damn product on the ice and quit talking about it Billy 

[OldDutchChip]

31 minutes ago, Citizen Strife said:

Where did I say keep him in Top 6?  I'm just saying buying out a year or half year adds more to the tab that we're gonna get rid of anyway.

well where are you going to slide MJ into then? perhaps a grinder line? or top line with Kap and Ek? 

[Dean]

Prospects don’t mean anything if you don’t have good development, coaching and management. Look around the league at young talented rosters floundering. To think we will come out of buyouts with a Stanley cup contender is ridiculous imo .  To keep giving Billy time to do nothing is also ridiculous imo. How many years now has Billy gotten us nowhere?  If he doesn’t pull his head out of his arse and start building this year than kappy is absolutely gone. 

[OldDutchChip]

16 minutes ago, MrCheatachu said:

That's not the entire picture if they send him to the AHL.  His paycheck will still be $2M next season (if he's skating in Iowa) but the buried threshold for 2024-2025 season is going to be $375k, which means the only part of his $2M that is going to hit the cap (if he is in the AHL) is $2M - $375k - $775k (league min) = $850K.

I dont know why you would buy out a player for $666k for TWO seasons when you can bury them in the AHL for $850k for one seasons...

$666k...OMG GUYS, MOJO IS THE DEVIL 

due to his NTC i do not believe he can be just sent there without his content thus the predicament. otherwise - leo would have sent half the team to iowa already and we be in a swell position

Edited June 17 by OldDutchChip

[Imyourhuckleberry]

17 minutes ago, OldDutchChip said:

well where are you going to slide MJ into then? perhaps a grinder line? or top line with Kap and Ek? 

Press box(preferred) or 4th line(the guy on that line they don't use for the PK). He certainly hasn't earned more play in the top 2 lines, but even if he is only NHL replacement level, NoJo is likely better than much of the AHL.

Dino and Shaw have well rounded defensive games for the 4th line. MJ certainly wouldn't bring any grit to that line, but he might be a decent replacement if any of the regular guys are missing time due to injury.

He does do one thing alright that is a 4th line standard, which is skating the puck to the red line and throwing it into the opposing zone for a line change.

Nobody is really wanting him to get 14+ minutes a night, but some people don't want his salary cap to hinder future years when this is his last with the Wild and it's highly unlikely the Wild will be cup contenders this year. Why extend his cap hit to future years?

If they can keep him off the NHL roster without giving up assets to move him, or extending his cap hit to future years, I don't think anyone here would take issue with that.

[Pewterschmidt]

48 minutes ago, MrCheatachu said:

That's not the entire picture if they send him to the AHL.

They allowed him (and no one rose up to take his spot) to coast, literally coast, thru a full season last year presumably for his ability to skate the puck thru the neutral zone. Without ever sending him a message using reduced ice time.  He's in the middle six for next season too whether we like it or not. 

[Citizen Strife]

Yes...because Beckman, Walker, Lucchini, and Letteri proved to be SO much better...

Ohgren and Khusnutdinov are here to provide better depth now.

Edited June 17 by Citizen Strife

[OldDutchChip]

19 minutes ago, Imyourhuckleberry said:

Press box(preferred) or 4th line(the guy on that line they don't use for the PK). He certainly hasn't earned more play in the top 2 lines, but even if he is only NHL replacement level, NoJo is likely better than much of the AHL.

Dino and Shaw have well rounded defensive games for the 4th line. MJ certainly wouldn't bring any grit to that line, but he might be a decent replacement if any of the regular guys are missing time due to injury.

He does do one thing alright that is a 4th line standard, which is skating the puck to the red line and throwing it into the opposing zone for a line change.

Nobody is really wanting him to get 14+ minutes a night, but some people don't want his salary cap to hinder future years when this is his last with the Wild and it's highly unlikely the Wild will be cup contenders this year. Why extend his cap hit to future years?

If they can keep him off the NHL roster without giving up assets to move him, or extending his cap hit to future years, I don't think anyone here would take issue with that.

there was some sarcasm in my response, so sorry - yes he should NOT be anywhere in the lineup. nowhere in lines 1-4. 

[Paul Bunyan is Real]

43 minutes ago, OldDutchChip said:

due to his NTC i do not believe he can be just sent there without his content thus the predicament. otherwise - leo would have sent half the team to iowa already and we be in a swell position

A NTC and NMC are 2 entirely different things. Mojo can be sent down to Iowa without his permission. So all Billy has to do is line up a potential trade partner and if Mojo says "no"  Billy can say fine "then I'm sending you to Iowa"

The Wild do have some leverage w Mojo.

[OldDutchChip]

8 minutes ago, Paul Bunyan is Real said:

A NTC and NMC are 2 entirely different things. Mojo can be sent down to Iowa without his permission. So all Billy has to do is line up a potential trade partner and if Mojo says "no"  Billy can say fine "then I'm sending you to Iowa"

The Wild do have some leverage w Mojo.

well saying ALL billy has to do is find another idiot to take on MJ is a maybe reaching above his ability

so if there is a requirement to have this be (a) find a trade partner and (b) ask MJ then it maybe a tough go. but if you are saying that MJ can just be sent to Iowa without his permission - then ship him out tomorrow! 

problem solved!

[OldDutchChip]

16 minutes ago, Citizen Strife said:

Yes...because Beckman, Walker, Lucchini, and Letteri proved to be SO much better...

Ohgren and Khusnutdinov are here to provide better depth now.

Ohgren and Khusnutdinov are here to provide better depth now. because we believe? because Marat had 1 goal in 16 games? is it because despite winning his first 3 FO he is just at 47% for the year? or is it because of his better than advertised speed? Or maybe its Ohgren's pedigree who played for a whooping 4 games in NHL but is ready to step in and show that he belongs? sorry until they show something, i am going to assume they are a bit less than proven NHLers

[Pewterschmidt]

8 minutes ago, OldDutchChip said:

Ohgren and Khusnutdinov are here to provide better depth now. because we believe? because Marat had 1 goal in 16 games? is it because despite winning his first 3 FO he is just at 47% for the year? or is it because of his better than advertised speed? Or maybe its Ohgren's pedigree who played for a whooping 4 games in NHL but is ready to step in and show that he belongs? sorry until they show something, i am going to assume they are a bit less than proven NHLers

Based on the small sample size, The Rat becomes Conner Dewar 2.0 for next couple years (hopefully that's not his ceiling) and Ohgzy becomes Nino Neidereiter lite for next season.  I saw a little bit of hockey sense (right place right time) on his goal and overall play.  Hopefully he wasn't purely playing off 1st NHL experience fumes like Hooz Nuts.  Hooz Nuts looked like a world beater his first game but then came back down to earth.  Hopefully that was him playing extra responsible (based on coaches guidance) and once he settles into the NHL game he can show a little more hockey play ability.

[OldDutchChip]

1 minute ago, Pewterschmidt said:

Based on the small sample size, The Rat becomes Conner Dewar 2.0 for next couple years (hopefully that's not his ceiling) and Ohgzy becomes Nino Neidereiter lite for next season.  I saw a little bit of hockey sense (right place right time) on his goal and overall play.  Hopefully he wasn't purely playing off 1st NHL experience fumes like Hooz Nuts.  Hooz Nuts looked like a world beater his first game but then came back down to earth.  Hopefully that was him playing extra responsible (based on coaches guidance) and once he settles into the NHL game he can show a little more hockey play ability.

i am probably being a bit too rough on them, but only to level out the expectations and hype train. but at the same time - if the team is icing a lineup this year that includes Freddy Nutty Rossi Ohgren and MJ i will be upset. and likely so will Kap.

[FredJohnson]

"Johansson has played 911 games over 14 seasons, accumulating 174 goals and 309 assists for a total of 483 points and minus 65 for his career.

He has value and can still be a contributing teammate in the right environment. But last season's 78-game calisthenics in-game training left most fans wishing Guerin would have kept Nyquist instead."
 

NoJo seems to need someone like Ovie to put a boot up his arse once in a while for motivation.

And I remember Nyquist being a cap casualty. Am I wrong?

[Protec]

1 hour ago, Pewterschmidt said:

They allowed him (and no one rose up to take his spot) to coast, literally coast, thru a full season last year presumably for his ability to skate the puck thru the neutral zone. Without ever sending him a message using reduced ice time.  He's in the middle six for next season too whether we like it or not. 

I've noticed Guerin gives guys a chance til he doesn't. Best case scenario, Guerin was giving NoJo the opportunity to find it but it didn't happen. Then like Addison, Talbot, Dean-O, Staal, Fiala, Jostradamus, or Greenway, the time comes they gotta go. We'll all be happier if that happens to NoJo and the Wild move on with more guts and work ethic, less neck-beard, stick-drops, and shameful looks to the rafters.