Columbus Blue Jackets release offers made to Ryan Johansen
By Cory Buck
Tensions aren’t easing between the Columbus Blue Jackets and holdout center Ryan Johansen as NHL training camp opens this week. The team is still without its leading goal scorer as Johansen and his agent await an offer they deem fair. In the meantime, Blue Jackets president John Davidson went ahead and released the offers that have been made to this point, presumably in an attempt to turn the needle of public opinion against Johansen.
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CBJ media day off to rousing start. JD comes right out and announces what the team has offered Johansen: $6M/2yrs, $32M/6 yrs, $46M/8. Wow.
— Michael Arace (@MichaelArace1) September 17, 2014
Presumably that two year deal is for $6 million total since that’s what the other terms denote the values as. if that’s the case, it’s a sham and the Blue Jackets should be ashamed they’re even releasing it. In truth, none of these offers approach the potential value of Johansen — a big-bodied 22-year-old center with a 30 goal season already to his credit, but they do pay up big money based on just one year of production.
Adding to that, Davidson released a quote on the negotiations via Michael Arace.
JD: "When you're talking about contracts close to $50 million, I think our group has been very fair and it's nowhere near what they want."
— Michael Arace (@MichaelArace1) September 17, 2014
Granted, nearly $50 million is a wonderful haul for eight years of any job, but it’s not an ideal offer for Johansen, who would still be best served by a bridge contract so as to further prove that his first 30-goal season wasn’t a fluke. If he could put up those numbers for two more seasons, he’d get a similar eight-year term that pays out at least $10 million more than what the Blue Jackets are offering right now.
For now, it appears as though both sides are dug in, but these things have resolved themselves quickly in the past even as they looked impossible to reconcile.
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