Toggle sidebar

Prospect Info: Ryan Johnson, D, 2019 #31 overall: Signed, Rochester (AHL), Recalled 12/5/24

  • Work is still on-going to rebuild the site styling and features. Please report any issues you may experience so we can look into it. Click Here for Updates
Husko said:
Dreger: "The expectation is that the Buffalo Sabres will get him signed as soon as Minnesota is done"
Click to expand...
You missed a bit. The HOPE, the expectation, is that Buffalo Sabres will get him signed as soon as he comes out of school.

He goes on to say how the Buffalo Sabres want him signed and how playing will be part of a negotiation.

I see very little news here.

The Sabres have a card to play which is to burn off a year of entry-level and give him close to max contract. I assume that is being offered.

BUCKSHOT said:
they didn't trade him at the deadline like they did Erik Portillo, Sabres must be pretty confidant that he will sign
Click to expand...
There is NOT the same urgency because they do get a compensation pick.

I'm not saying he won't sign -- it makes sense for him, if you ask me. He gets to burn a year. The possibility of a spot next year exists.

There just isn't much new and we will have to wait.
 
HogtownSabresfan said:
You missed a bit. The HOPE, the expectation, is that Buffalo Sabres will get him signed as soon as he comes out of school.

He goes on to say how the Buffalo Sabres want him signed and how playing will be part of a negotiation.

I see very little news here.

The Sabres have a card to play which is to burn off a year of entry-level and give him close to max contract. I assume that is being offered.


There is NOT the same urgency because they do get a compensation pick.

I'm not saying he won't sign -- it makes sense for him, if you ask me. He gets to burn a year. The possibility of a spot next year exists.

There just isn't much new and we will have to wait.
Click to expand...

I'm hopeful for sure. But, as Dingo (and you) said, caution is best in Buffalo sports and there isn't a need to count chickens that aren't hatched yet.
 
Dingo44 said:
I almost have to respect the pessimism right up to the end.
Click to expand...
To be fair, the way the world is going these days, you almost have to expect the worst in order to not lose your mind. I’ve always been an eternal optimist, even when it came to the Sabres, but man, it can really lead you to some gut punches.

It’s almost like blowout losses are easier to cope with than close, last minutes losses.

That being said, I’ve gone from being about 85% sure we were going to lose Johnson to about a 80% belief we are signing him.

Levi restored my faith in the world. Go Sabres, go America (and Canada).
 
  • Like
Reactions: Dingo44
Selanne00008 said:
I'm hopeful for sure. But, as Dingo (and you) said, caution is best in Buffalo sports and there isn't a need to count chickens that aren't hatched yet.
Click to expand...
Everybody wants him signed. I agree. But the other thing is that he is hardly an answer to shortcomings on D for next year. He likely tops out in his career as a second-pairing guy leaning into the third pair. We need lots of depth, so clearly, he fits on any level. But the truth is we need a top 4 RD guy who can hit and clear guys out from the front of the net. Cloning Samuelsson would work but I'm not sure the Sabres medical staff is up to speed on cloning -- or anything else.
 
  • Like
Reactions: beerme1
HogtownSabresfan said:
Everybody wants him signed. I agree. But the other thing is that he is hardly an answer to shortcomings on D for next year. He likely tops out in his career as a second-pairing guy leaning into the third pair. We need lots of depth, so clearly, he fits on any level. But the truth is we need a top 4 RD guy who can hit and clear guys out from the front of the net. Cloning Samuelsson would work but I'm not sure the Sabres medical staff is up to speed on cloning -- or anything else.
Click to expand...
Yeah, but if you clone Samuelsson he'll only be a fetus and its unlikely he'll be right handed, blah, blah, blah. ;)

I haven't been as excited about Johnson as most others, but he certainly could be a nice upgrade to the 3rd pairing LHD. Maybe not THE answer to the defensive shortcomings, but could help.
 
  • Like
Reactions: HogtownSabresfan
The problem with the defense is beyond the fixing of one player change, and Johnson is at best part of the third pair solution next year. The best place for Johnson is likely to spend most of next year on the top pair for the Amerks with a couple injury call ups. They need to load that team for a Calder run.

The defense needs at least two players not in the organization right now.

1. A legit top 4 D, of any reasonable age with at least a few years term.
2. A good servicable aging vet that used to play top 4 minutes, who can man the third pair and move up on occassion for injuries. Boosh and Stillman can round out the 7, though I am fine if you find better there as well.
 
  • Like
Reactions: brian_griffin, DeletedUser539 and Rowley Birkin
Bendium said:
The problem with the defense is beyond the fixing of one player change, and Johnson is at best part of the third pair solution next year. The best place for Johnson is likely to spend most of next year on the top pair for the Amerks with a couple injury call ups. They need to load that team for a Calder run.

The defense needs at least two players not in the organization right now.

1. A legit top 4 D, of any reasonable age with at least a few years term.
2. A good servicable aging vet that used to play top 4 minutes, who can man the third pair and move up on occassion for injuries. Boosh and Stillman can round out the 7, though I am fine if you find better there as well.
Click to expand...
Yea i would like us to get graves and mayfield over the summer to plug in at no.4 rhd and no.6 lhd
 
  • Like
Reactions: Bendium
I don't think anyone is saying RJ is going to come in and save the D. BUT, he is a big add, even if it's depth for the first year. The ceiling is there, plus opportunity.

Adding another starting D , drafting another in the 1st/2nd round, along with RJ added to the mix should make many feel a LOT better.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Dex
Selanne00008 said:
I don't think anyone is saying RJ is going to come in and save the D. BUT, he is a big add, even if it's depth for the first year. The ceiling is there, plus opportunity.

Adding another starting D , drafting another in the 1st/2nd round, along with RJ added to the mix should make many feel a LOT better.
Click to expand...
As long as we all understand that we MUST bring in a legit top 4. Neither RJ or a draft pick can fill that void. If we had a true 4th defender all year we would be in the playoffs. Inexcusable if it happens again.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Selanne00008
Bendium said:
If we had a true 4th defender all year we would be in the playoffs.
Click to expand...

Could not disagree with this statement more. One more defenseman doesn't magically get us 3 more wins. There are a multitude of reasons why we're not making the playoffs, and individual defensive talent ranks very low. The one thing that could have gotten us 3 more wins? Our forwards actually playing defense in the defensive zone.
 
  • Like
Reactions: BUCKSHOT, Jacob582, Selanne00008 and 1 other person
Zman5778 said:
Could not disagree with this statement more. One more defenseman doesn't magically get us 3 more wins. There are a multitude of reasons why we're not making the playoffs, and individual defensive talent ranks very low. The one thing that could have gotten us 3 more wins? Our forwards actually playing defense in the defensive zone.
Click to expand...
I can't even imagine how you wrote that without laughing at yourself. You see the impact everytime Sammy, Dahlin, and even Power is missing. You don't think having a 4th guy all year would have gotten us 3 games?

Poor Power has been playing 20+minutes all year as a second line pair, with partners that are all barely AHL to bottom pair capable. How much better would that second pair have been with a legit top 4 opposite Power? Hell, that would have made the bottom pairing better too.

Zero question that having that 4th top two pairing defenseman all year would have resulted in an additional 3+ more wins. I can't wait to hear a legit argument against that.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: MeenOlViks and SamsonReinFart
Digable5 said:
Yeah, but if you clone Samuelsson he'll only be a fetus and its unlikely he'll be right handed, blah, blah, blah. ;)

I haven't been as excited about Johnson as most others, but he certainly could be a nice upgrade to the 3rd pairing LHD. Maybe not THE answer to the defensive shortcomings, but could help.
Click to expand...
Exactly, Ryan Johnson could help. We need a serious RD for the team. If he can play top 4 better. Not sure Jokiharju or Lyubushkin are top 4 guys. Stillman should be a 7 and Bryson an 8 or even a 9 guy. Ryan Johnson would get a shot at top 6 and have to earn it in 2023-24, in a perfect world,
 
  • Like
Reactions: Digable5
Zman5778 said:
Could not disagree with this statement more. One more defenseman doesn't magically get us 3 more wins. There are a multitude of reasons why we're not making the playoffs, and individual defensive talent ranks very low. The one thing that could have gotten us 3 more wins? Our forwards actually playing defense in the defensive zone.
Click to expand...
a top4 from the beginning of the year? not sure those 0-8 would have happened, when cobra was out.
getting Joker out of the top4 wont get you any more wins? if they have top4 all year they're in, period.
 
  • Like
Reactions: MeenOlViks, SamsonReinFart and EichHart
Zman5778 said:
Could not disagree with this statement more. One more defenseman doesn't magically get us 3 more wins. There are a multitude of reasons why we're not making the playoffs, and individual defensive talent ranks very low. The one thing that could have gotten us 3 more wins? Our forwards actually playing defense in the defensive zone.
Click to expand...
Really? You don’t think one impact player could net a couple games on an entire season? Heck I think if they trade for Chychrun at the deadline they’re almost certainly in, let alone for the entire season. I don’t think think one player moves the needle just a handle of points is all that outlandish.
 
There hasn’t sounded like there has been anything to worry about with Johnson signing for almost three months now. You‘d have to outright ignore that every single piece of local coverage switched from pessimistic to “hearing things have changed for the positive” at the exact same time. Lance was the most pessimistic person on it forever and even he, at the same time as everyone else, said it had changed. When everyone has the same story at once…someone gave them all the story. There was no reason to doubt it at that point.
 
Selanne00008 said:
I don't think anyone is saying RJ is going to come in and save the D. BUT, he is a big add, even if it's depth for the first year. The ceiling is there, plus opportunity.

Adding another starting D , drafting another in the 1st/2nd round, along with RJ added to the mix should make many feel a LOT better.
Click to expand...
Shouldn’t there only be one RJ for Sabres fans? And this guy ain’t it.
 
  • Like
Reactions: debaser66, Jacob582 and elchud
You must log in or register to reply here.

Ad

Latest posts

Ad

Upcoming events

Ad

Top Bottom