Read all the posts last night trying to see if it would help me get a sense of where I'm at with this trade - and it didn't. I ended up agreeing with nearly every post as I read it, even ones that were in opposition to each other.
Anyway so I'll use this post as a repository of connected thoughts, because I know how badly everyone has waited to see what I would have to say about the trade:
I recently had a bit of clarity on Johansen. Not everyone will agree, but it's something that made sense to me. I think he was no longer having fun playing hockey. He's immature, and I don't know that he knew how to handle the succession of the heart thing, the nature of the tough love he was getting and the lack of success on the ice. I'm not getting into whether the leadership or organization is to "blame" - I think everyone was doing their best to do what they thought was best. But the floating, confused Joey we've been seeing, I don't believe was an attempt to get out of Columbus, I think he genuinely liked it here. And I don't think it was pouting or a protest of how he was being treated or (fully) a conditioning issue. I think he didn't enjoy his job, and he dealt with it poorly, like many young people do.
I had come to grips the he would be traded. I think he's going to be very good, and I didn't want it to happen, despite his sub-par play this season. But I think it was not only an organizational excising of a player they thought was a problem. There was likely some consideration given to how much his next contract would be, even if negotiated down, and how much money that meant would be devoted to forwards, and that, coupled with the player's lack of direction, led the FO to decide the time was right. Now, is there "blame" at the organizational level for putting itself in a position not to be able to afford its young star player? For sure.
I had hoped the return would be greater. I love Jones as the player he might become. But I see the questions surrounding each player differently. Johansen had already played at a high level, so to me his questions weren't about how good of a player he could be, but how good he would be. Whereas with Jones we don't even know how good he could be. I think this is the distinction that Viqsi is getting at. I acknowledge that both are areas of unknown.
I'm not happy with how this looks on the FO, and I share the concerns some have with regard to the motivations behind the way the roster is built and what I perceive as a lack of direction. There's a lot more to post on this topic but it's probably better suited to another thread and another time.
That said I would never suggest anything like "I hope Joey goes off and the FO comes to regret this." That would likely mean that Jones didn't max out and the CBJ has gotten worse. I don't want that to happen, so I'll just wait and see, both short and long term, how the trade - both Joey going and Seth coming - affects the team and its performance. It should go without saying that, despite whatever reservations, I want the Jackets to be successful.
