Confirmed Trade: [NJD/TOR] Andreas Johnsson for Joey Anderson

[Notsince67]

Is that really the plan going into next season? Robertson in the top six? Or is it more fan hope that that's who will be in the top six?

Robertson is an awesome player. Definitely a better fit at top 6 than Johnsson. Top goal scorer in the OHL.

 

[Maplebeasts]

You’re getting a good one NJ. Wish we would have traded nylander instead. He’s twice the price for 15 more points, plus johnsson is fiesty and has a nose for the net unlike nylander

Lol wtf. Nylander is light years better. He also lead the NHL in net front goals last year so I don't know what you're talking about. Johnsson will be missed though, legitimate top 6 upside if he can stay healthy and get the chance.

 

[Notsince67]

He has good chemistry with Matthews. He's gritty.

He's a 3rd liner on most teams.

What a joke. Leafs have one of the best offensive lineups in the league yet Hyman is only good enough in the bottom six for most teams excluding the leafs? This hot take needs to be framed.

 

[broc]

Johnsson was invisible this year when he was on the ice. No big deal. Anderson could round into 3rd liner form still.

 

[Notsince67]

If you don’t know the players involved why say silly things? As everybody knows the Leafs need to clear cap, the result of that is Jersey just got a good player for peanuts.

Johnsson was expendable. Little chance he would have cut it on the top 6. Leafs looking for some grittiness on bottom 6 and Johnsson aint that. That being said, NJ got the better skilled player but the leafs had little choice. Leafs needed a grittier 3rd or 4th liner who is more of a connor brown type

 

[TopCheese]

Lol wtf. Nylander is light years better. He also lead the NHL in net front goals last year so I don't know what you're talking about. Johnsson will be missed though, legitimate top 6 upside if he can stay healthy and get the chance.

He’s already a legit top 6- 20 g 45 p

 

[Volica]

They had a 10 million dollar 3rd line that really underperformed last season.

Imo too many folks get caught up on caphits of players when analyzing quality.

I mean, considering how we were told on HF that Kapanen/Jonhsson were legit top 6 guys playing down the roster for a solid, what, 3 years now; I don't think anyone's getting caught up on cap hits

Hell, do we need to go back to some of those old threads of how much Kapanen and Johnsson were better than multiple other players? There were MANY.

At the end of the day, those guys are better players than what's there now; and the Leafs were already top heavy. Being honest, and it's going to of course cause Leafs nation to quote me 100000 times and disagree; that bottom 6 doesn't resemble how any cup winner has ever looked. The top 6 does, even the top 3D if you kind of look at it squinty does.

 

[Maplebeasts]

He’s already a legit top 6- 20 g 45 p

He was getting close in 2018-2019, but last year he was definitely not top 6 material. Granted he did run in to injury trouble but he wasn't a difference maker when he was playing. The Leafs are better served with the Sandpaper and hustle Joey Anderson plays with.

 

[NoelVilla]

Being honest, and it's going to of course cause Leafs nation to quote me 100000 times and disagree; that bottom 6 doesn't resemble how any cup winner has ever looked. The top 6 does, even the top 3D if you kind of look at it squinty does.

I agree completely with this.

 

[TheBeastCoast]

I mean, considering how we were told on HF that Kapanen/Jonhsson were legit top 6 guys playing down the roster for a solid, what, 3 years now; I don't think anyone's getting caught up on cap hits

Hell, do we need to go back to some of those old threads of how much Kapanen and Johnsson were better than multiple other players? There were MANY.

At the end of the day, those guys are better players than what's there now; and the Leafs were already top heavy. Being honest, and it's going to of course cause Leafs nation to quote me 100000 times and disagree; that bottom 6 doesn't resemble how any cup winner has ever looked. The top 6 does, even the top 3D if you kind of look at it squinty does.

I mean Johnsson was coming off a really good season where he paced for over 50 points....he wasn't the same player last year due to multiple reasons I am sure. Contrary to popular belief around here all Leaf fans do not have one working opinion on the players on the team and another shocker...opinions can change the more you watch a player. AJ is probably going to prove whether he is a top 6 player this year or just another middling 30-40 point guy. The Leafs are not in a position to take that gamble and the Devils are.

 

[DFF]

Johnson and kapanen can't play any more?

 

[TopCheese]

He was getting close in 2018-2019, but last year he was definitely not top 6 material. Granted he did run in to injury trouble but he wasn't a difference maker when he was playing. The Leafs are better served with the Sandpaper and hustle Joey Anderson plays with.

Do you think Anderson will be a regular? 14 points in 57 games is underwhelming

 

[Maplebeasts]

Do you think Anderson will be a regular? 14 points in 57 games is underwhelming

On the fourth line sure. Keep in mind he's still got some upside left and is 3 and a half years younger than Johnsson is.

 

[BobClarkesfrontteeth]

I mean, considering how we were told on HF that Kapanen/Jonhsson were legit top 6 guys playing down the roster for a solid, what, 3 years now; I don't think anyone's getting caught up on cap hits

Hell, do we need to go back to some of those old threads of how much Kapanen and Johnsson were better than multiple other players? There were MANY.

At the end of the day, those guys are better players than what's there now; and the Leafs were already top heavy. Being honest, and it's going to of course cause Leafs nation to quote me 100000 times and disagree; that bottom 6 doesn't resemble how any cup winner has ever looked. The top 6 does, even the top 3D if you kind of look at it squinty does.

The funny thing is both team traded for these guys to play in their top 6. Hell one guy is going to get a very long audition as Crosby's winger. Unless Crosby is now the 3rd line center on the Penguins?
I am sure you and many other posted ad nauseam on this site about how they were too soft, top heavy etc. The Leaf management is now straightening that out with these trades. This trade was a cap dump but they did bring back a potential gritty 4th line player. I for one as a Flyers fan will be very interested to see what they do with the cap space created. This team has closed the gap with Boston now that Krug is gone.

 

[ER89]

He’s already a legit top 6- 20 g 45 p

Yeah aj is good, but your take on nylander is burke level bad. Jesus.

 

[kevsh]

A few thoughts for those scratching their head (stop) or thinking Dubas made a bad move:

- Johnsson's role in the top 9 was redundant with Robertson coming up
- Leafs had to clear cap space to plug two major holes on the blue line
- As we've seen already it's a buyer's market. Just ask Tampa Bay.
- Every team has access to Cap Friendly. Therefore they all knew yesterday that Toronto *had* to move salary. I'm confident Dubas took the best offer available.
- JR got absolutely fleeced by Dubas, so if you can't accept the Johnsson deal as anything but bad, just think of it in terms of the sum of off-season moves for this team and it's clear Kyle did a pretty good job.

 

[BoredBrandonPridham]

Johnsson's 2018-19 season he produced well, but also had mostly offensive usage, starting over 60% in the offensive zone 5v5, producing p/60 at 2.4. When you flip that usage to starting over 60% in the defensive zone instead, that's when we get "invisible" Johnsson, who produced at a 1.9 p/60 clip in 2019-20.

Having a look at Anderson, he's had a pretty rough ride in terms of usage early in his career. He's been starting 58-60% in the defensive zone (just like Johnsson's "invisible" years), and is producing at 1.5 p/60 5v5. This is obviously at a smaller sample.

It's pretty easy to understand the narratives by looking at usage/context, rather than us having a player magically getting better and worse every year, turns out there are reasonable explanations.

That said, how Anderson is producing with his defensive usage at 21 is not very far behind what Johnsson was producing at 25.

All in all this seems like a pretty fair trade to be quite honest. Leafs cleared up some cap space in exchange for a player with a similar upside. Essentially just delaying paying a similar calibre player by ~2-3 years.

 

[KPower]

Johnson and kapanen can't play any more?

They’re both heading to the hall of fame since the trade.

 

[TBF1972]

I was wondering why this minor trade already has 17 pages. It's not about NJ.

 

[TopCheese]

Yeah aj is good, but your take on nylander is burke level bad. Jesus.

I know Nylander is much better than johnsson But I don’t think he’s a giy you want on the ice in a game 7 down a goal. Would have preferred to trade nylander for more defensive help

 

[Zajacs Bowl Cut]

Johnsson was invisible this year when he was on the ice. No big deal. Anderson could round into 3rd liner form still.

Johnsson already is at worst a 3rd liner

Anderson may one day be a 3rd liner

I'll take the sure thing any day of the week

 

[Bedards Dad]

I was wondering why this minor trade already has 17 pages. It's not about NJ.

A high end 3rd liner/low end 2nd liner leaving the leafs as a cap dump is far more important to HF than a 1st line player being traded from any other team. I don't understand the obsession.

 

[Bedards Dad]

Johnsson already is at worst a 3rd liner

Anderson may one day be a 3rd liner

I'll take the sure thing any day of the week

100%, but for the Leafs this likely wasn't about the the player Johnsson is, but the cap space he takes when we have another cheaper player who can easily fill his role in Robertson.

 

[Cor]

Johnsson already is at worst a 3rd liner

Anderson may one day be a 3rd liner

I'll take the sure thing any day of the week

Devils get the better player, Leafs get a player that rounds out their depth better, and needed cap space.

Feels like a deal both sides should be happy with.

 

[Legion34]

Johnsson already is at worst a 3rd liner

Anderson may one day be a 3rd liner

I'll take the sure thing any day of the week

as you should.

AJ is a legit player. I personally preferred him to kappy. He can play with better players.

the leafs didn’t have room. He was completely redundant on the team.

but NJ will be happy with him as a middle six winger.

Toronto hopefully will be happy with Anderson as a bottom 6 checker and 3 million cap space.