Hockey experts and NHL insiders from all walks of life have given their two cents on Wednesday night’s Ryan Johansen/Seth Jones trade between the Nashville Predators and Columbus Blue Jackets.
But why scour the blogosphere or the Twitter world when you can find some of their reaction below in one convenient place. You’re welcome.
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Elliotte Friedman (Sportsnet) via Calgary’s 960 the Fan
“You saw a trade of pieces that are hard to find. I don’t think there’s another team who could’ve traded Seth Jones. Nashville at least can look at [Roman] Josi at [Shea] Weber at [Mattias] Ekholm at [Ryan] Ellis and say ‘We don’t like it but we can do it.’ I’m not sure there’s another team in the League that could’ve done that… So, I think you’re looking at a team dealing from a position of strength looking to address it’s greatest weakness. And I think you’re looking at another team who isn’t dealing from a position of strength but added a player that everybody would love to have.”
“I think Minnesota was there. I think Colorado was there… I can’t say 100 percent sure St. Louis was there, but I think they were. But to me, it became almost a game of chicken. I think Columbus sat there and said ‘Are we going to be able to pry Seth Jones out of Nashville. Let’s wait and take the chance that we can.’ That’s what I think went on here. I think there were other teams who really pushed to get… Ryan Johansen out of Columbus and the Blue Jackets sat there and said ‘We’ve got time. Let’s wait to see if Seth Jones ever becomes available.’ I think other teams took a big run at trying to get him, and Columbus was like ‘Nope. We’re going to wait.’… Once David Poile changed his mind, the deal got done.”
Greg Wyshynski (Puck Daddy) via Yahoo! Sports
“Up front? Well, if you haven’t noticed, the Blue Jackets are absolutely terrible. So does one trade Ryan Johansen with the knowledge that the odds will be in their favor to snag Auston Matthews, a center and an American kid to market to fans in Ohio? But mostly they make this trade because they feel Ryan Johansen isn’t worth the time, trouble or next contract. So they pass that problem to GM David Poile of the Nashville Predators, and that’s what David Poile does: He takes your problems away, and they become his solutions.”
Renaud Lavoie (TVA Sports) via Calgary’s 960 the Fan
“This is a move that was made by the Blue Jackets at the start of the season when they fired their coach thinking that they’ll be better. I don’t see a better team playing now. It’s even worse. … I’m happy for them. They picked up a good defenseman in Seth Jones but Seth Jones is not going to help them make the playoffs this year. It’s going to be a process and I don’t think, as of right now, they are a better team. Maybe in three or four years but, as of right now, they lost that trade.”
“In three weeks, they’re going to have the All-Star Game. This is a special season for the Predators and they want to make sure they’re going to be a winning team during the playoffs and that they’re going to be able to make a good push. And this is a good year, I think, in the Western Conference to make a good push because it’s going to be tough for the Blackhawks to repeat. I think it’s pretty open right now. There’s a lot of good teams. The Los Angeles Kings can still win the Stanley Cup and you need to put the Predators in that conversation.”
Jimmy Hascup via USA Today
“You can’t win in the NHL without horses down the middle, and you can’t win without dependability on defense. That being said, I’ll take the 23-year-old center who has flashed his potential over the kid defenseman who has yet to fully display his.”
Andrew Berkshire via Sportsnet
“Johansen is an upgrade for Nashville in every area — most significantly in possession-driving plays and loose puck recoveries, two areas that help generate shot attempts. Johansen is also an upgrade in scoring chance generating plays, individual scoring chances (shot attempts from the slot), and successful passes to the slot. Most people who delve into deep hockey analysis believe that Jones will end up being the superior player in the trade overall but one problem for Columbus in this trade is that they didn’t deal from a position of strength like Nashville did.”
“Both teams acquired players they needed for the future but, in evaluating the trade, even though Columbus very well may have gotten the better player, what they have left at the centre position leaves too much to be desired.”
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PHOTO CREDIT: Brooks Bratten // Nashville Predators
