Pick #31 Ryan Johnson Defenseman

[pi2000]

I know his Dad, he has a plan.

[Brawndo]

1 minute ago, pi2000 said:

I know his Dad, he has a plan.

His Dad is an Anaheim Scout, so I trust you do know Him. Any idea what that plan is by chance? 

[pi2000]

1 minute ago, Brawndo said:

His Dad is an Anaheim Scout, so I trust you do know Him. Any idea what that plan is by chance? 

His priority is getting a sufficient chance to play.   

If Buffalo provides that opportunity, then I fully expect he'll sign.   

[nfreeman]

56 minutes ago, Flashsabre said:

blah blah blah Johnson will walk for free, Power will stay 4 years at Michigan and walk for free.  Go get some fresh air for God's Sake.

Geez.  Please excuse me for raising a question about a situation that is very different from Power's situation -- i.e. Johnson only needs to play 1 season more than his current plan to become a UFA, whereas Power would need to play 3 more seasons.

But I do need some exercise, so thanks for the reminder.

[GASabresIUFAN]

29 minutes ago, pi2000 said:

His priority is getting a sufficient chance to play.   

If Buffalo provides that opportunity, then I fully expect he'll sign.   

Buffalo is probably the best place for him then.  Wasn't he also paired with Samuelsson for an international tournament?

[LGR4GM]

21 minutes ago, GASabresIUFAN said:

Buffalo is probably the best place for him then.  Wasn't he also paired with Samuelsson for an international tournament?

Buffalo is the one of the worse teams for him now. He doesn't play the right side, he has at least Dahlin and Power ahead of him in the lineup. 

[GASabresIUFAN]

Just now, LGR4GM said:

Buffalo is the one of the worse teams for him now. He doesn't play the right side, he has at least Dahlin and Power ahead of him in the lineup. 

Actually he can play either side.  Has played his offside before in college and in international competitions.  Dahlin also plays both sides. I actually expect Dahlin to move to the right side.  

Samuelsson and Bryson are left shoots as well.  Doesn't matter in the end.  The best players will play and talent wise he'll earn a spot quickly.  We need smart defensive D who can skate and that is Johnson's game.

[LGR4GM]

2 minutes ago, GASabresIUFAN said:

Actually he can play either side.  Has played his offside before in college and in international competitions.  Dahlin also plays both sides. I actually expect Dahlin to move to the right side.  

Samuelsson and Bryson are left shoots as well.  Doesn't matter in the end.  The best players will play and talent wise he'll earn a spot quickly.  We need smart defensive D who can skate and that is Johnson's game.

Pretty sure in college he plays with Brock Faber but sure, if you want to believe that.

[Thorny]

4 minutes ago, GASabresIUFAN said:

Actually he can play either side.  Has played his offside before in college and in international competitions.  Dahlin also plays both sides. I actually expect Dahlin to move to the right side.  

Samuelsson and Bryson are left shoots as well.  Doesn't matter in the end.  The best players will play and talent wise he'll earn a spot quickly.  We need smart defensive D who can skate and that is Johnson's game.

There are many, many d men who play their off side pre nhl and far fewer who do so in the nhl. Very uncommon in the top 4, and basically non existent top pair. 

Dahlin has played 3 years on his left. Very unlikely he moves to the right. Never mind a seamless transition for the player we most want to maximize. 

Very unlikely Johnson plays the right. Maybe bottom pair 

Edited August 24, 2021 by Thorny

[JoeSchmoe]

1 hour ago, dudacek said:

promise to let him finish the regular season in Buffalo, and allow him to blow an ELC year.

I'm not sure if this has ever been said before, but blowing one year of the ELC is not as bad as it sounds.

If you can get a guy to his first RFA contract before he starts peaking, you have a chance to get through RFA at a much lower salary than you would if he had one additional year of development. You do lose him to UFA a year earlier, but the savings over their RFA period might somewhat make up for it, especially if you can lock the player up for long term under market rate.

For example, I tend to think the Leafs could have had Marner for way cheaper than they do right now if they wouldn't have given him the 2 extra years in London. This of course would have freed up additional cap room to actually sign some of their other RFA and UFAs instead of losing them for nothing.

[GASabresIUFAN]

23 minutes ago, Thorny said:

There are many, many d men who play their off side pre nhl and far fewer who do so in the nhl. Very uncommon in the top 4, and basically non existent top pair. 

Dahlin has played 3 years on his left. Very unlikely he moves to the right. Never mind a seamless transition for the player we most want to maximize. 

Very unlikely Johnson plays the right. Maybe bottom pair 

one top D who plays his offside in the NHL is Sergachev and there are others

[Thorny]

19 minutes ago, GASabresIUFAN said:

one top D who plays his offside in the NHL is Sergachev and there are others

Who? 

And again, he’s been playing it on lower pairs. He’s had the odd stretch with Hedman looking at the numbers but by far he’s been spending his time when on the right on lower pairs 

It’s not that you don’t see d men ever play their off hand (and Sergachev is a good example), it’s just not common in the top 4 and certainly not on the top pair. 

As far as I know there isn’t a single player playing off hand on a top pair in the league, on a consistent basis. Could be wrong on there being literally zero though.

I think the last guy to do it regularly was Niklas Hjalmarsson on something in Chicago 

Edited August 24, 2021 by Thorny

[dudacek]

1 hour ago, pi2000 said:

His priority is getting a sufficient chance to play.   

If Buffalo provides that opportunity, then I fully expect he'll sign.   

Thanks for the info.

 

6 minutes ago, JoeSchmoe said:

I'm not sure if this has ever been said before, but blowing one year of the ELC is not as bad as it sounds.

If you can get a guy to his first RFA contract before he starts peaking, you have a chance to get through RFA at a much lower salary than you would if he had one additional year of development. You do lose him to UFA a year earlier, but the savings over their RFA period might somewhat make up for it, especially if you can lock the player up for long term under market rate.

For example, I tend to think the Leafs could have had Marner for way cheaper than they do right now if they wouldn't have given him the 2 extra years in London. This of course would have freed up additional cap room to actually sign some of their other RFA and UFAs instead of losing them for nothing.

I've always thought "blowing the ELC" was way overplayed in some internet circles.

Each player develops at his own pace. At some point you will have to decide whether or not to make a long-term investment.

Whether you make the call 2 years in or 6 years in is far less important than correctly evaluating the player.

[LGR4GM]

10 minutes ago, GASabresIUFAN said:

one top D who plays his offside in the NHL is Sergachev and there are others

Ryan Johnson doesn't play the right in college. He plays the left and Brock Faber plays the right side. 

[Brawndo]

Just now, pi2000 said:

His priority is getting a sufficient chance to play.   

If Buffalo provides that opportunity, then I fully expect he'll sign.   

He has been playing on The Right Side at Minnesota on occasion, if he can do that in the NHL, He will be in the Sabres Top 4. 

26 minutes ago, LGR4GM said:

Ryan Johnson doesn't play the right in college. He plays the left and Brock Faber plays the right side. 

I believe His Freshman Year they had him play on the right a few times, He did not look lost over there. 

[Thorny]

11 minutes ago, Brawndo said:

He has been playing on The Right Side at Minnesota on occasion, if he can do that in the NHL, He will be in the Sabres Top 4. 

I believe His Freshman Year they had him play on the right a few times, He did not look lost over there. 

I need to get more hyped for this guy, didn’t know his floor if he can play his offhand was second pair 

[Thorny]

Every second pair needs a Power Johnson 

[GASabresIUFAN]

9 minutes ago, Thorny said:

Every second pair needs a Power Johnson 

Doesn't everyone.

[Sabres Fan in NS]

13 minutes ago, Thorny said:

Every second pair needs a Power Johnson 

Who is the Sabres #2?

Unknown, I bet.

Who would load up the first pairing with Power and Rasmus?  I think Power could be our #2 on the top pairing.

Was Weber paired with Suter?  Keith and Seabrook (SP?)?

I think it will be a nice problem to have one day.

Where do you put Joker and SamSwede (I can't spell his name)?

[sabremike]

Trade him to the Devils for Tyce!!!!!!!!

[Thorny]

8 minutes ago, New Scotland (NS) said:

Who is the Sabres #2?

Unknown, I bet.

Who would load up the first pairing with Power and Rasmus?  I think Power could be our #2 on the top pairing.

Was Weber paired with Suter?  Keith and Seabrook (SP?)?

I think it will be a nice problem to have one day.

Where do you put Joker and SamSwede (I can't spell his name)?

Well, Keith and Seabrook shoot left and right, respectively. 

As for the bold, I’m too biased against the idea to really consider that right now. Looking at past results, it’s so uncommon to see someone manning the top pair on their off hand - to me that speaks volumes for how NHL coaches feel and therefore most useful in terms of predicting the most likely future. Dahlin or Power could and may play top pair off hand but there’s enough past evidence to suggest, for me, that most coaches feel their best defenders aren’t maximized that way. I think I’m most interested in maximizing Power and Dahlin. 

I prefer them on two separate pairs in the end, anyways. It’s the old thing about having a top player (let’s hope) allows a bit of flexibility in line mate. Spread the wealth out through the lineup.

Theoretically we’ll have some forward depth, right? I’d like both top 6 lines to play with a smooth top level d man 

[Flashsabre]

2 hours ago, nfreeman said:

Geez.  Please excuse me for raising a question about a situation that is very different from Power's situation -- i.e. Johnson only needs to play 1 season more than his current plan to become a UFA, whereas Power would need to play 3 more seasons.

But I do need some exercise, so thanks for the reminder.

Your welcome😀  My comment wasn't directed at you, just a generalization of posters across different boards who have been pushing this narrative that Johnson and Power will both somehow leave and Buffalo will be helpless.

[Digger]

Even if he ends up playing on the 3rd pair, he's still in a top 6 spot in the NHL.  I find it ridiculous to suggest that he's looking at the Sabres on paper and worried about Dahlin and Power ahead of him.  He needs to focus on having a great year and getting the opportunity to sign with the Sabres and then work on trying to make the NHL.  It's short sighted.  Good players will always find a place on the team one way or another.  There are issues breaking into the NHL on any team.

When we drafted Mittelstadt, we had Eichel and O'Reilly ahead of him and looked to be strong at center.  Roll ahead a few years and Mittelstadt is now at the front of the line.

 

[Rasmus_]

If we lose this kid, then again, this is another black mark on the franchise.  Let's go on record as saying this is an important guy to get in the system as soon as he is ready to go pro.  We need to stop letting young talent out of the building. 

[Digger]

1 minute ago, Rasmus_ said:

If we lose this kid, then again, this is another black mark on the franchise.  Let's go on record as saying this is an important guy to get in the system as soon as he is ready to go pro.  We need to stop letting young talent out of the building. 

agreed.