On June 17th the Columbus Blue Jackets will submit their list of protected players for the Expansion Draft. Which defenseman will fill the third and final protected slot.
Expansion draft chatter is heating up along with the June air. With less than three weeks before the Vegas expansion draft the Columbus Blue Jackets have a big choice to make at defense.
Seth Jones and David Savard are certainly getting protected. Zach Werenski is not eligible for the expansion draft. That leaves a huge decision to chose either Jack Johnson or Ryan Murray as the third and final defenseman to be protected.
If the Columbus Blue Jackets can figure out a way to protect Josh Anderson, Murray or Johnson will be likely the best option for Vegas. I firmly think the CBJ will find a way to get Anderson protected and figuring out the defensive protection will be the teams biggest challenge. Or biggest opportunity.
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Protecting Murray or Johnson
Who doesn’t love Jack Johnson? American and compliments Savard wonderfully. The two are a fantastic pairing. The were a great scoring threat and played above average defense all year.
Columbus Blue Jackets
Protecting the veteran over the injury riddled Murray could makes sense. He is a leader in the room and has experience that isn’t bountiful on this Blue Jackets roster. The pairing with Savard is fantastic and you could clearly tell they played well together.
And let’s not kid ourselves about Murray. He has been very injury prone. Murray certainly hasn’t produced at the level a #2 overall pick should either. Last season in 60 games he had 11 points. He wasn’t a complete defensive liability but the lack of consistency certainly wasn’t ideal.
At the start of next season he will still only be 24-years-old. He has shown signs that he can be a solid defenseman and unlike Johnson, can play with any other player on the blue line.
Johnson looked utterly lost without Savard. Murray played with Harrington, Savard, Johnson, Nutivaara, and Quincey for times this year and looked comfortable with all of them. With an anticipated influx of young defenseman coming like Gabriel Carlsson and Vladislav Gavrikov (hopefully), Murray’s ability to play with anyone is invaluable.
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Jack Johnson is in the last year of his $4.3 million deal. The Jackets defensive depth and youth make it very unlikely that they will resign Johnson following the 17-18 season. His contract expires the same year as Cam Atkinson, Boone Jenner, William Karlsson, and Markus Nutivaara are all set for new contracts as well. He will not be first in line for a deal.
Tempting Vegas
The Jackets will be a roster with plenty of choices for the Vegas Golden Knights. One of the most prime in the league for the pickings of Vegas GM George McPhee.
Jack Johnson is one of the only players the Jackets could tempt Vegas into taking. The Jackets could throw Vegas a pick to ensure they pick Johnson. That would then ensure the safety of Joonas Korpisalo, William Karlsson and Josh Anderson.
Johnson is very appealing to the team because he is an above average defender that can contribute on the blue line. He is an American and former captain of Team U.S.A. Jack played a majority of his career in Los Angeles so west coast hockey fans and future Vegas fans have familiarity with him. His high cap hit helps Vegas hit their cap floor and he is immediately a player they can market around.
These factors make dealing him to Vegas easier than any player on the Jackets roster all while protecting the valuable, young assets the CBJ have. Dealing Johnson to the Vegas Golden Knights is the Jackets best strategy for the Expansion Draft.