From Aaron Portzline of the Columbus Dispatch:
Told agent for #CBJ C Ryan Johansen has 2- and 4-year proposals on table. Hasn't been much communication between two sides lately.
— Aaron Portzline (@Aportzline) August 7, 2014
#CBJ want nothing to do w a 4-year deal, as that would guide Johansen right up to UFA status. They have 2- and 3-year proposals on table.
— Aaron Portzline (@Aportzline) August 7, 2014
At last glance (Sunday), the two sides were “hectares” apart in their negotiations. Without knowing the financial part of the reported proposals on the table, it’s hard to say if there’s been any progress.
Johansen, a 22-year-old restricted free agent, is coming off his best season as a pro, in which he scored 33 goals with 30 assists in 82 games for the Blue Jackets.
In late June, Johansen told the Dispatch that the Jackets’ insistence on signing him to a bridge deal “seems like a slap in the face.”
And with no arbitration deadlines to meet, this negotiation could last all the way to training camp.
Obviously, both sides will be hoping it doesn’t go beyond that, a la P.K. Subban two seasons ago.