Article: The Kent Johnson Dream Is Over

[Tony Abbott]

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[FredJohnson]

It's still confusing that the Wild, with their lack of centers throughout their history, would look to trade (arguably) the first true center in their history to score 40 points before turning 23.

I know everyone has a price, but the statement above should be reasons 1, 2, 3 & 4 for expecting a BIG return if Rossi gets traded.

[TheGoosesAreLooses]

I'd rather have Rossi. Rossi weighs more with Johnson only clocking in @168lbs, has better defensive acumen and has an attitude you would hope to have in every rookie. On top of that Johnson had a down year  in 23-24 and was returned to the AHL on a Columbus team that was absolutely bottoming out. Judging sheerly by stats Rossi is also more of a goal scorer than Johnson as well.

Moral of the story, keep Rossi. See how much he improves this year and give him a bridge deal. If Heidt comes up and kills it maybe you move him out to wing and if you don't want to do that you have a very valuable trade piece in the future. Trading him low this year while he is on an ELC and we are against the cap hard is about the dumbest thing to do with a developing rookie.

[bisopher]

Anyone that thinks Rossi could be / could have been replaced 1-for-1 by a player that COLUMBUS, one of the consistently worst teams in the league, only values at 2 yrs. @ $1.8MM/yr. is out of their mind(s).

Rossi is Ek in a slightly smaller package, mark my words.

[mnfaninnc]

Tony are you insane? Nobody dreamed about Kent Johnson in a Wild uniform. It was suggested a while back but he was never the right player to acquire, regardless of if it was for Rossi or someone else.

Johnson clocks in at 6' 178 according to NHL.com. I have no idea if he's faster than Rossi, but he's certainly not bigger, just taller. Taller isn't bigger. He's also weaker as his slight frame suggests. 

I might have done a Jiricek deal, especially since we lack RHS size in the organization. But Johnson would have been a really, really dumb trade to make. He was overdrafted and he's not really going to make it in the N with this frame. It also appears he has more of an Adam Beckman type of attitude with working out, lots of conditioning, very little strength training. The evidence for this is 178. 

I think this needs to be stated. Rossi would have been traded for someone significantly larger than himself with similar skill. Significantly larger is not a couple of inches taller. We're talking about someone 6'2" or taller and in the 205-210 category. Someone like an Ek. That trade would have cost more than just Rossi too (unless it was Jiricek). Bigger, stronger, faster. They were looking for all 3 things, not just 1.

[Tony Abbott]

Awesome, then you agree that Marco Rossi is plenty strong enough to make an impact despite being 5-foot-9, I'm glad you're on board.

[Citizen Strife]

Rossi proved himself in this system, so that says more than a flyer on a Columbus player ever will.

[Dis-allowed display name]

1 hour ago, Tony Abbott said:

Awesome, then you agree that Marco Rossi is plenty strong enough to make an impact despite being 5-foot-9, I'm glad you're on board.

Kirill is 5'10" and nobody is looking to move him because he is too small.  I understand that the team wants to get bigger, but production is production.  A team needing or wanting to get bigger does not have to do it by getting rid of someone like Rossi, they need to add size where they have people just taking up space.  (NoJo and Freddy)

[Burnt Toast]

Rossi is strong and he’s going to get stronger. He’s known as one of the Wild’s best squat lift guys. I can’t wait to see his improvements from this offseason. I hope he gets a nice bridge deal soon. 

[Rutters91]

I highly doubt the Wild were ever really serious on trading Rossi.  I think everyone heard that the Wild were open to the possibility of a trade and went bonkers with different scenarios.

[Protec]

Rossi has made good progress. Once NoJo and Zuccarello are replaced by bigger, faster, grit-injected players, MN will be fine. He can still become harder to play against. 

I'd like him centering Trenin and Ogie. Hartman between Zuccy and Foligno. Knudi centers Lauko and Fred on the 4th line. NoJo sits out. Next guy up fills in for Fred or any injuries. If Heidt is really good early, maybe Fred sits out some too. MN should have much better depth at the NHL level and some good assets if a trade opportunity comes up before Christmas. Might send a guy out at the deadline too, depending on if the upside guys secure a spot. 

[Need4speed99]

Tony, love the article.

I only say this to the haters. Yes Johnson is taller but at 178 vs the 185(possibly higher) that rossi WAS is bullshit. People need to realize size isn't production. Rossi is one year in and has more solid muscle and the kid seems to take everything in to get better.... don't  understand it. Guerin and liepold seem to have this idea of 7 ft bruisers but that is NOT the nhl today.

No way trading rossi makes this team better in prospect or these(guys needing a change of scenery) now. You want to show kirill you can win, show the prospects, we KNOW what the vets can do.

But they want the mushy middle, let's just go with that.

 

 

 

 

 

[Protec]

I have come around on Rossi but he's not untouchable. His health is a concern for me going back to him sitting out from hockey.

Physics are still real. Reach, and speed along with hardness to play against is what you want in a top-six center who can help you win a Cup. See Barkov, Bennett, Lundell. 

Rossi is good. Maybe he get's better. Not untouchable, plus he is our best asset. 

[Ice Creeps]

I knew it and told you all months ago that trading Rossi was the stupidest thing possible for this team. A team that can barely muster 2 goals a game, to get rid of a #1 pick who’s just starting to come into his own. We need all the offense we can get and Rossi will be a big part of that.

[mnfaninnc]

20 hours ago, Tony Abbott said:

Awesome, then you agree that Marco Rossi is plenty strong enough to make an impact despite being 5-foot-9, I'm glad you're on board.

I am not one of the complainers about his height. I was a complainer of his need to bulk up, especially since he looked far weaker than when we drafted him. I was on the plan of giving him one more year, before last year, before looking to trade him away. I thought he passed the test, but would really be eligible for a bridge deal, not a full fledged longterm deal. I still think he needs a little more bulk, but I was happy with the way he played most of last year. I thought he slipped a little bit near the end of the season physically, and he just needs a little more power to his game. 

With his myocarditis, and the lost development of covid, I thought he might take a little longer to develop. What I wasn't aware of is just how depleting the myocarditis was for his body. When they showed video of him working out and it was not strength but strictly conditioning (after he was sent back to Iowa), I knew we were in trouble. The fact that he took the time to bulk back up was significant. That also meant his mind was healed too (the last thing to heal for a player). He finally trusted his heart was ok and he could function with the bulk without compromising his life. When he was sent back, it was obvious he couldn't compete in the N. The only reason for last season was his willingness to add the strength. And he succeeded quite well. If he's going to be a "little Ek," he needs one more offseason where he comes in looking like a middleweight tank. 

All said, I still would have drafted Lundell at 9 in that draft. I thought his size would have been a great 1-2 punch with Ek (and I was probably one of the 1st to believe that Ek had a lot of hidden skill that was about to break out). If you look at Anton Lundell's measurements, though, Rossi outweighs him by about 5-10 lbs. and I'd expect that to rise next year. Lundell also needed to add strength and he hasn't as of yet. That will mean that with the low center of gravity for Rossi he will have a lot of leverage heading into corners and the front of the net. I thought he showcased that strength plenty last season and could have even finished better. I think he's fine at center and could be a good #2 even on a deep run in the playoffs. 

I would be fine trading the player, but am not giving him away or taking a discount. The piece we get back would have to be of equal value for a player, but would also need to fulfill a vacant place on this roster where we could backfill with another prospect to equal Rossi's production. So, someone like David Jiricek (I hope that's the older one) would be a viable replacement due to age, position and size. All these guys around the same age group lost that covid year of development. Some will be slower some will be faster to develop. Defenders typically are 2 years further out. Simply put, we do not have an RHS the size of Jiricek in our organization playing defense. I would also think this would need to be a better than 1 for 1 deal and we would need at least a 2nd rounder back on top of that. Jiricek would still be a rookie, but he's just an example and not necessarily my target. 

[mnfaninnc]

12 hours ago, Protec said:

I'd like him centering Trenin and Ogie. Hartman between Zuccy and Foligno. Knudi centers Lauko and Fred on the 4th line. NoJo sits out. Next guy up fills in for Fred or any injuries. If Heidt is really good early, maybe Fred sits out some too. MN should have much better depth at the NHL level and some good assets if a trade opportunity comes up before Christmas. Might send a guy out at the deadline too, depending on if the upside guys secure a spot. 

I do like this plan, but have to remember that Johansson and Gaudreau CAN be waived and sent to Iowa. If they are beaten out, I'd suggest trying to sneak them through waivers and have them as callups. I'd love to see a couple of rookies take their spots. The thing I'm most ready for is an open training camp with Heinzy where he'll give every player a fair shot at a roster spot. Our real payroll for players is near the basement so certainly the team can afford paying those low salaries to players in Iowa. Enough can be buried to afford ELCs.

[mnfaninnc]

10 hours ago, Need4speed99 said:

I only say this to the haters. Yes Johnson is taller but at 178 vs the 185(possibly higher) that rossi WAS is bullshit. People need to realize size isn't production. Rossi is one year in and has more solid muscle and the kid seems to take everything in to get better.... don't  understand it. Guerin and liepold seem to have this idea of 7 ft bruisers but that is NOT the nhl today.

Nobody's suggesting they go after unskilled 6'7" 235 lb. guys (although a guy like that on the blueline who has an aggressive angry tendency would be nice). I would suggest that Rossi is a bigger player than Johnson right now, so this takes out the whole premise of bigger, stronger, faster. Faster isn't just straight line speed either, it's how fast can they play. It's how fast can they go North, South, East and West. We all saw how ineffective Ennis was, that's a fast guy going North. He also was so fast he painted himself into corners. I'd suggest that with Rossi's low center of gravity, he should be really fast East and West with elite edges. Yes, a 5'9" guy can be a big player. Johnson isn't bigger, he's just 3" taller. Taller is not part of bigger, stronger, faster.

[mnfaninnc]

57 minutes ago, Ice Creeps said:

I knew it and told you all months ago that trading Rossi was the stupidest thing possible for this team. A team that can barely muster 2 goals a game, to get rid of a #1 pick who’s just starting to come into his own. We need all the offense we can get and Rossi will be a big part of that.

I have to disagree with you IC, trading Rossi is not the stupidest thing. Dumping Rossi would be the stupidest thing. Trading him for something you don't have that makes the team better is pretty smart, especially if you're convinced you can backfill that production with another prospect. A good example of this was when Dallas traded Hornqvist to the Pens because they could backfill that production with Benn. Then, they gained pieces they didn't have which made them better as a team (not like the Dallas now, but at the time it helped them). 

Within that comment, though, let's put it into context. Benn was already on the roster. He was about to get a larger role. They were convinced that he had what it took to replace the production. Currently, we have Rossi on the roster, not Heidt, Haight or Yurov. They are not ready as of August 3rd to take that spot. So, this probably is not the right time to trade Rossi. In my previous comment I suggested someone like Jiricek might be a good replacement. He'd be in a different position and a player we do not have in the organization, but he, too, has yet to claim a roster spot on the CBJ blueline. So, something like this may need to wait a year or more. 

[Protec]

The Wild didn't have scoring problems last year too bad. It was the defensive side of the game where they struggled. Rossi as a center has to be better below the dots and around the net. A bigger center and a guy who can win draws would help the Wild. 

[UPDude]

9 hours ago, mnfaninnc said:

Nobody's suggesting they go after unskilled 6'7" 235 lb. guys (although a guy like that on the blueline who has an aggressive angry tendency would be nice). I would suggest that Rossi is a bigger player than Johnson right now, so this takes out the whole premise of bigger, stronger, faster. Faster isn't just straight line speed either, it's how fast can they play. It's how fast can they go North, South, East and West. We all saw how ineffective Ennis was, that's a fast guy going North. He also was so fast he painted himself into corners. I'd suggest that with Rossi's low center of gravity, he should be really fast East and West with elite edges. Yes, a 5'9" guy can be a big player. Johnson isn't bigger, he's just 3" taller. Taller is not part of bigger, stronger, faster.

John Scott would please like someone from the front office to call.

[mnfaninnc]

16 hours ago, Protec said:

Rossi as a center has to be better below the dots and around the net. A bigger center and a guy who can win draws would help the Wild. 

I'd think that 10 extra pounds would probably help that a lot. Early on, I thought the new and improved Rossi was doing a fine job below the dots. The last 20 games, or so, I thought he was a little weak. It is possible, being a rookie, that he hit the wall in that aspect. It's different playing against almost men in the A for 2 seasons, and playing against much bigger men in the N. Therefore, I'd say he needed a bit more strength just to handle the punishment of the N.

[Paladin823rd]

In my mind Rossi gained my respect when he took on that guy and yes I cannot remember the game or the player to tell the truth but he stuck up for Kaprizov and that showed me that he got game. 😁