35-year-old defenseman has three goals in 49 games with Buffalo this season
35-year-old defenseman has three goals in 49 games with Buffalo this season
The Buffalo Sabres have won three games in a row and have played better since the All-Star break, but the club is well out of the Eastern Conference playoff race with less than two weeks to go before the NHL trade deadline. GM Kevyn Adams is expected to be a seller before March 8, with six unrestricted free agents potential targets of contending clubs. One player that may be attracting significant interest is veteran defenseman Erik Johnson.
Johnson signed a one-year, $3.25 million contract with the Sabres last summer, in part to be a mentor to young blueliners Rasmus Dahlin and Owen Power, but also to help Buffalo get over the hump and snap the club’s long playoff drought. Although the 2006 top overall pick has helped solidify the Sabres blueline, the club is all but certain to miss the postseason for the 13th straight year and it is uncertain whether the 35-year-old plans to continue his career after this season.
"I've never been in this situation before…..at the deadline. So there is a little bit of anxiousness, uncertainty, and doubt. I'm disappointed that we are where we are and I take some responsibility for that. I don't think I've really helped these guys enough," Johnson said after practice on Monday. "I'm disappointed we are where we are and I really wish it were in a different spot right now. That being said, you really can never count yourself out until there's no more chance of getting in."
Johnson said that he tries to stay unaware of the chatter that comes prior to the deadline, but recognizes that it is possible he could be traded for the first time since being moved from St. Louis to Colorado in 2011. He indicated that he is open to being moved if Adams approaches him in the next two weeks.
"If Kevin comes to me, and that's what he wants to do, and it's for the best of the team, then I'll go for it and get moved," Johnson said. "Right now, I'm just taking it day by day, focusing on the team and the guys and just coming in and working hard and helping them anyway can and when that time comes, we'll talk about it."
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