Predators move on from Johansen, trade center to Colorado

The Predators took a massive step in re-tooling the franchise on Saturday, trading forward Ryan Johansen to the Colorado Avalanche in exchange for forward Alex Galchenyuk, who will be a free agent on July 1.

Nashville agreed to pay half of Johansen’s remaining $8 million salary over each of the next two years.

Still, the move opens up $4 million of cap space in the next two years for the Predators. Nashville now has $19.5 million in cap space this year, per the CapFriendly website, the ninth-highest total in the league.

That money could be used for re-signings, adding players via trade or through free agency.

“We’ve just added $4 million dollars in cap space, and we’ve also given more opportunity to hopefully the next Ryan Johansen that [fans] can fall in love with,” Predators general manager Barry Trotz told the Post on Saturday. “Part of [the deal] was to be flexible in terms of cap, but also in terms of commitment and allowing for our young players to develop and grow.”

Johansen, who will turn 31 in July, has been a huge part of the Predators’ success over the last eight years, ever since Nashville acquired the former first-round draft pick in January of 2016.

In 533 games spanning eight seasons with the Predators, Johansen totaled 362 points (110 goals, 252 assists). He was a big reason why the Predators reached the Stanley Cup Final in 2016-17, totaling 13 points in 14 postseason games before a thigh injury kept him out of the final series against Pittsburgh.

But with Nashville making the decision at last season’s trade deadline that a franchise re-make was in order, Johansen was apparently not part of the future.

The Predators missed the playoffs for the first time in nine years last season, and Nashville has not won a round in the postseason since 2018.

“We can wish upon a star and see if we can go one more round, but it hasn’t happened,” Trotz said. “Since 2017, we haven’t done much. I think it’s time to create a new core. I think [Roman Josi’s] got lots of hockey left. [Juuse] Saros has lots of hockey. [Filip] Forsberg has got lots of hockey. Those are three pretty good pieces out of the gate.”

Trotz had addressed Johansen’s status in May, saying the veteran would need to step up his game in order to make a successful return. Johansen had a disappointing 2022-23 season, totaling 28 points (12 goals, 16 assists) in 55 games before suffering severed ankle tenons on Feb. 21 — an injury that necessitated surgery and will require lengthy rehabilitation.

“Joey is going to have his best summer,” Trotz said at the time. “The league is getting quicker. Joey is a skillful player. He has size, he’s good on face-offs, he’s got lots of good things to offer. But the game is getting quicker and [speed is not] one of his strengths.

“So how do you get that half second back? And then getting into a role where it makes sense for him as well. So right now I think he’s chasing the moving train a little bit. He can catch it, but he’s going to have a really good summer.”

The Predators’ decision to move on from Johansen will open the door for younger centers — such as Tommy Novak, Cody Glass and Juuso Parssinen — who boosted their value by helping keep Nashville in the playoff race last season despite the absence of several veterans.

“You’ve got young guys that are starting to develop in Parssinen and Glass, Novak,” Trotz said. “They’ve been able to grow because of injuries, and those were to the older players. That’s part of it. We’ve got a bunch of young players out there, and we’ll have to develop them in Milwaukee and finish their development in the NHL. That’s part of what you want to see.”

As valuable as Johansen had been to the Predators over the years, he was not one of the league’s elite centers. The contract extension he signed in 2017 — an eight-year, $64 million deal — made it all but impossible to move on from Johansen without swallowing some of the money. Nashville left Johansen — and forward Matt Duchene — unprotected in the 2021 expansion draft, but Seattle passed on both.

"Your highest-paid guys have to absolutely be your best players,” Trotz said.

The Predators could have opted to buy out Johansen’s contract, which, per Cap Friendly, would have cost the team about $10.7 million spread over the next four years — an average of about $2.7 million per year.

Instead, trading Johansen — even while retaining 50 percent of his salary — means the Preds will be paying a total of $8 million over just two years. Presumably, that will give the organization more salary-cap flexibility down the line when a young team starts to mature and looks to free agency.

As for Galchenyuk, it appears doubtful he will be part of the Predators future. Trotz said Nashville is unlikely to sign him before he becomes an unrestricted free agent.

A 2012 first-round pick of Montreal, the 29 year-old Galchenyuk has been plagued by injuries over the past few years. He played just 11 games for Colorado last season and didn’t record a point. The 11-year NHL veteran spent most of the 2022-23 season in the American Hockey League trying to rehabilitate from a knee injury.

Trotz thanked Johansen for his many contributions to the franchise on and off the ice in a press release.

“On behalf of the Predators organization, we want to thank Ryan for his contributions to our team and community over the last seven-plus years,” Trotz said. “He played a large role in our franchise’s accomplishments since arriving in January 2016, helping lead us to the 2017 Stanley Cup Final, the 2018 Presidents’ Trophy, back-to-back Central Division titles in 2018 and 2019 and several postseason appearances.

“Ryan also dedicated a considerable amount of time to the Predators Foundation and helped us grow the game in Middle Tennessee, including his work with youth hockey in our community. We wish Ryan all the best in Colorado.”