Ryan Johansen

[Roadman]

Every prospect develops at their own rate. Ryan's pace just seems to be a little slower than some. He is really coming along now. So much potential let's hope he keeps developing.

It might be that the present leadership group has helped. It certainly can't hurt being around guys like Dubinsky, Folingno, JMFJ and the work ethic of Bob. Then there's his contemporaries Cam, Murray, Jenner, and Calvert. To say nothing of the fact that success breeds success.

Very much a better environment than when he arrived.

 

[Xoggz22]

Ryan is the king of the Empty Net

Not exactly sure what the intention with the statement is but when I read this I get nothing but a good feeling. If you are on the ice with the game in question and play in the last minute of a game with a 1 goal lead.... That tells me the coach trusts the player and he's rewarding him.

I hope Ryan gets another 10-20 empty netters. That simply means we're winning games.

 

[Bronz]

Another goal for Johansen. They need to get this kid some better linemates.

 

[major major]

Another goal for Johansen. They need to get this kid some better linemates.

You're probably right. He's scoring on the cusp between first and second line level right now (based on league wide scoring averages), without the benefit of scoring linemates. That's pretty damn impressive.

Seriously if he plays another 15 years like this he's worth a 4th overall. But he's 21! And will probably get even better.

 

[scoob4093]

You're probably right. He's scoring on the cusp between first and second line level right now (based on league wide scoring averages), without the benefit of scoring linemates. That's pretty damn impressive.

Seriously if he plays another 15 years like this he's worth a 4th overall. But he's 21! And will probably get even better.

Glad to see he's doing well but this goal was scored in garbage time. His tude will always be in question.

 

[CBJWerenski8]

Glad to see he's doing well but this goal was scored in garbage time. His tude will always be in question.

Oh god. He made a mistake, move on. His 'tude is fine.

 

[major major]

Glad to see he's doing well but this goal was scored in garbage time. His tude will always be in question.

Always? He's 21. What the **** were you doing when you were 21? I was ..... (no I will not share, but its not dignifying.) Steve Yzerman was a floater, etc...

And I'll give him full cred for a garbage time goal when he's threatening to score all game long.

 

[scoob4093]

Always? He's 21. What the **** were you doing when you were 21? I was ..... (no I will not share, but its not dignifying.) Steve Yzerman was a floater, etc...

And I'll give him full cred for a garbage time goal when he's threatening to score all game long.

He on the fast track to Toronto is he ?

 

[Sore Loser]

He on the fast track to Toronto is he ?

Johansen's attitude is fine. It always was. Would anyone else have reacted any differently? Going from the hottest team in the NHL - an emotional high; even shutting down your idol (Joe Thornton) in a late season game, while making a push to the playoffs. Then missing the playoffs on the last day of the season, and finding yourself on a bus across the midwest, playing for a team that you had nothing to do with the day before.

All at 20 years old.

Ryan Johansen was a huge part of a turnaround in the WHL - as a 17 year old rookie he skated on the top line of a team that had been the league's worst for three running years; and helped lead that team to a first round playoff victory over the league's most recent Memorial Cup champ. Bad attitude? Try hard working, effective two-way center who wanted to be a part of something more than an AHL team, and played well enough to do so before (and clearly after) said incident.

Get over it.

 

[scoob4093]

Johansen's attitude is fine. It always was. Would anyone else have reacted any differently? Going from the hottest team in the NHL - an emotional high; even shutting down your idol (Joe Thornton) in a late season game, while making a push to the playoffs. Then missing the playoffs on the last day of the season, and finding yourself on a bus across the midwest, playing for a team that you had nothing to do with the day before.

All at 20 years old.

Ryan Johansen was a huge part of a turnaround in the WHL - as a 17 year old rookie he skated on the top line of a team that had been the league's worst for three running years; and helped lead that team to a first round playoff victory over the league's most recent Memorial Cup champ. Bad attitude? Try hard working, effective two-way center who wanted to be a part of something more than an AHL team, and played well enough to do so before (and clearly after) said incident.

Get over it.

Bus across the Midwest ? Said incident ? Of all the players sent down by NHL clubs to participate in the AHL playoffs there was one standout prima donna. Your hero.

 

[Roadman]

Bus across the Midwest ? Said incident ? Of all the players sent down by NHL clubs to participate in the AHL playoffs there was one standout prima donna. Your hero.

Oh for God's sake, let it go. That was last year.

Did he kick you cat or something while he was there?

 

[major major]

I'll agree with Scoob that it was definitely a bad incident for Johansen and reflects poorly on his character. I just don't think its going to tell you much about his attitude / character when he grows up.

 

[CBJx614]

Why are we still bickering about what happened last season? I'm more focused on his 7pts in 7 games. His top line minutes and his faceoff %. What he did in the AHL is irrelevant if he continues at anywhere near this pace.

 

[Jaxs]

Joey definitely didn't do himself any favors during the Springfield's playoff run. I'll cut him some slack and chalk it up to the big club not making the playoffs and being spent after the 19-5-5 run the team had just come off of. Whether he had a bad attitude or he was loafing, Larsen wasn't having it and scratched him. I forget how many he was scratched for.

CBJ management thought and rightfully so, that he could gain from participating in a playoff run at that level, higher than the junior level. It's funny because it reminds me of the Filatov situation, where they brought him up to watch the Jackets get swept by Detroit. A lot of good that did, while pissing off the Syracuse organization even more than it was with the big club.

 

[Sore Loser]

Bus across the Midwest ? Said incident ? Of all the players sent down by NHL clubs to participate in the AHL playoffs there was one standout prima donna. Your hero.

I can assure you that, when he goes on to a long and prosperous NHL career, this moment will be entirely forgotten by everyone except for you and a handful of other bitter people.

Does anyone outside of Kennewick, Washington, remember that Jonathan Toews committed to play with their team, was selected first overall in his bantam draft, and opted to go the collegiate route instead? Nope ... all they remember are the two Stanley Cups and perennial dominance.

 

[Mayor Bee]

Back between 1976 and 1977, Robin Yount of the Milwaukee Brewers (MLB) was a young phenom whose development looked to have stalled. He already had three years in the league, but didn't look to be improving. In the offseason, he took up golf and became an excellent player very quickly.

Within a year, he was talking openly about retiring from baseball (at age 21) to pursue a career in pro golf. Plenty of people in the know said that he had the skills to be a very good pro player, and he spent a lot of time focusing on his golf game, possibly at the expense of his baseball.

When this happened, a lot of people in baseball freaked out. "He's a loser!" "He SHOULD go play golf if he's not going to focus on baseball!" "Look at the money he's making; I never made that much and I never complained!" "These damn kids need to get off my lawn and back on the field!"

What happened was, during this time in the wilderness, Yount realized that although he really liked golf, he really loved baseball. With a fresh outlook, he rededicated himself to baseball and ended up not just an All-Star, but a first-ballot HOFer. This never would have happened if he hadn't had this crisis of what he wanted to do and how he handled it. It's something that would have festered, and eventually would have ground down both his career and his potential career.

 

[Bronz]

I'm not sure why anyone would make a big deal on a 20 year old being lacksidasical (sp?) during a short stretch of games. Was it unprofessional? Perhaps, but hate to break it to people, but plenty of professional athletes, even the superstars getting paid premium dollars, take shifts, games, and even entire stretches of games "off".

Hell i'm 30 and I take days off at work, am I getting paid a million dollars a year? No. But please stop killing a 20 year old for doing so, I'm sure it was a learning experience for him and judging by his play this year he learned from it.

There is no #1 center on this team. Anisimov is not a #1 guy, even though he has obvious chemistry with Gaborik. Dubinsky is a warrior, but he's not a #1 guy. Ryan Johansen could be a #1 guy. He's solid defensively, is GREAT at winning faceoffs which is an extremely under rated part of hockey that will serve a team well in key situations, and shows offensive skill that is elite. He just needs the linemates to help him nurture that skill. Umberger and whoever are not it.

 

[blahblah]

Wrong thread.

 

[Sore Loser]

I'm sure it was a learning experience for him and judging by his play this year he learned from it.

Excellent comment.

 

[Palinka]

I'll tell you what I think.

I'd rather have Ryan Johansen than Jonathan Toews. Young forwards don't come into the NHL and suddenly graft an elite skillset onto what they can already do. And Ryan Johansen has already managed to turn himself into an elite - yes, elite - defensive forward while barely scratching the surface of some immense offensive potential. He's better defensively than 95% of the forwards in the NHL, and could still hit 80-90 points in the very near future.

 

[CBJWerenski8]

I'll tell you what I think.

I'd rather have Ryan Johansen than Jonathan Toews. Young forwards don't come into the NHL and suddenly graft an elite skillset onto what they can already do. And Ryan Johansen has already managed to turn himself into an elite - yes, elite - defensive forward while barely scratching the surface of some immense offensive potential. He's better defensively than 95% of the forwards in the NHL, and could still hit 80-90 points in the very near future.

That's just laughable.

 

[Palinka]

The smart-ass comment isn't really necessary. It doesn't change how Manny was regarded. I've seen raves about his 92 point pace in the Memorial Cup. The were were many scouts who loved Manny as a big two-way center his draft year.

He was picked high in the first round, someone besides Gretzky loved his talent.

I hope Johansen can become a top line offensive center who plays a 200 ft game. All I'm saying today is that so far there are definite parallels between the two.

I scouted Manny Malhotra, quite extensively in fact. I can comfortably say that 80% of us thought that he'd be an exceptional third-liner, 10% thought he'd be a second-liner, and 10% were dumbasses.

With the changes in the game starting around 1996, there became a premium placed on defensively-sound players, especially forwards. I was one of that 80% who felt that Malhotra would be an exceptional third-liner, and yet I recommended taking him as high as #3 in that draft, #2 if you thought his offense would come around to 20 goals and 50 points in a season. That's due to both how the market changed and how mature Malhotra was, plus the fact that there were a lot of question marks about other top prospects that year.

Unfortunately, Malhotra was drafted by a Rangers team that couldn't decide if they wanted to rebuild or continue to get older and more expensive. Neil Smith made some rather unfortunate comments, for which one of his own scouts made a rather pointed and humorous wisecrack in my presence when asked about it. If he'd kept his mouth shut and actually focused on a rebuild instead of throwing money at aging useless players, the Rangers would have been better off and would still have a damned good player. He or the people above him couldn't handle that, and so they lost both.

 

[candyman82]

I'll tell you what I think.

I'd rather have Ryan Johansen than Jonathan Toews. Young forwards don't come into the NHL and suddenly graft an elite skillset onto what they can already do. And Ryan Johansen has already managed to turn himself into an elite - yes, elite - defensive forward while barely scratching the surface of some immense offensive potential. He's better defensively than 95% of the forwards in the NHL, and could still hit 80-90 points in the very near future.

I hope you're Stan Bowman

 

[Cyclones Rock]

Count me in the Johansen camp as of now.

I judged him on far too small a sampling and was completely wrong in not incorporating the learning curve for most teenagers in the NHL in my previous analysis of him. I should know better from watching a lot of the ECHL youngsters in both games and practices. Often times, inexperienced skilled players take a while to translate the skills which they demonstrate in practice into the games. I'd like to think that if I ever had watched Johansen in CBJ practices that I wouldn't have been so appallingly incorrect in my previous judgements of him. LOL

I thought that with the possible exception of Karlsson, Johansen was the most dominant offensive player on the ice for the first two periods of the game last night.

He had numerous scoring opportunities and created a few more with some awesome passing. He used his teammates exceptionally well and created space for himself when he didn't have the puck. He is so strong on the puck that it seemed as if he was dictating the pace of the play when he had the puck at times. I'm looking very forward to enjoying his offensive development.

 

[EspenK]

I'll tell you what I think.

I'd rather have Ryan Johansen than Jonathan Toews. Young forwards don't come into the NHL and suddenly graft an elite skillset onto what they can already do. And Ryan Johansen has already managed to turn himself into an elite - yes, elite - defensive forward while barely scratching the surface of some immense offensive potential. He's better defensively than 95% of the forwards in the NHL, and could still hit 80-90 points in the very near future.

I'm beginning to warm to Joey. Part of what will hold him back in the future from 80-90 pts is LOFT (F=finishing ) on the part of his line mates. Maybe between Gabby & Horton but otherwise I don't see it. But it is interesting to hear your observation.