Jack Johnson started last season with the Blue Jackets as a top-four defenseman, slipped to a third-pairing role as the year rolled on and ended his campaign in incredibly unceremonious fashion, watching from the press box as a healthy scratch as Columbus was eliminated from the playoffs in six games.
But Johnson’s inability to crack the Blue Jackets lineup, and early reports of a high-priced ask, reportedly haven’t scared off any of his suitors. And as speculation ramped up leading into the opening of free agency, all signs pointed to Johnson, 31, heading to the Pittsburgh Penguins. It appears that’s exactly what will happen, too, albeit on what is sure to be one of the more head-scratching deals that’s to be signed Sunday. First reported 105.9 the X’s Mark Madden and confirmed throughout the week by others, including The Athletic’s Aaron Portzline, Johnson is heading to the Penguins on a five-year deal that will reportedly see him paid $3.25 million per season.
Given what early reports were regarding Johnson’s asking price — some suggestions were that he would be seeking as much as $6 million annually — the value of the season-by-season dollar figure on the deal isn’t all that bad. It’s $1.1 million per season less than Johnson was earning on his previous seven-year, $30.5-million pact which he signed back in January 2010 and almost half of the reported asking price ahead of free agency. But the money is one thing. The term is another altogether.
At five years, Johnson has earned himself close to the max term for an unrestricted free agent, and by the time the contract is complete, he’ll be a 36-year-old rearguard. That’s concerning given he’s already had a tough time cracking the Blue Jackets blueline, as noted, and that he has slid statistically in recent years.
A consistent 35- to 40-point player during his prime, Johnson has 14 goals and 48 points in his past 219 games played. That’s a .22 points per game rate, or less than 20 points per game over the course of an 82-game campaign. What’s more is that Johnson hasn’t been especially effective on either special teams unit during that time, either. He has only eight power play points over the past three seasons, and he’s not exactly going to get a chance to shine on either unit in Pittsburgh. This is to say nothing of Johnson’s defensive play, either, which hasn’t exactly been Norris Trophy calibre over the past few seasons.
Effectively, what has happened with the Johnson signing is an erasing of the move the Penguins made earlier this week. Moving out Matt Hunwick by shipping him, along with Conor Sheary, off to the Buffalo Sabres cleared some much needed cap space, but with Johnson as his expected replacement, whatever minor gain the Penguins may have made could be negated by the loss in an extra bit of cap flexibility.
