Former Colorado Avalanche defenseman Erik Johnson is not a fan of star players asking for trades. In a recent rant on ESPN, Johnson notes, “I can’t stand these guys halfway through their contracts … bailing ship and wanting to go for greener pastures.”
Johnson is one of hockey’s newest analysts, and he’s not wasting time putting his stamp on the product. With some strong words about guys like Dylan Larkin and Connor Hellebuyck, both of whom have requested trades, he sits firmly in the camp of ‘Get rid of those players’ if they don’t want to be there.
“This isn’t exclusive to Dylan Larkin, lots of guys around the league are doing it. I don’t like it.”
Johnson Speaks from Experience
Johnson noted, “I did live with Matt Duchene in 2016. He asked for a trade from Colorado. He got it. But the core guys of the team, Gabe Landeskog, Nathan MacKinnon… we went to Joe Sakic and said, “Get him outta here. We want to be part of the Avs and part of the solution.” We ended up being rewarded for that.”
–@6ErikJohnson on the uptick of trade requests amongst players in the NHL.
Johnson knows firsthand what it’s like to be around those players. He mentioned the Matt Duchene situation with the Avalanche. Duchene requested a trade from Colorado, the Avs’ core told Joe Sakic to “get him out of here.”
He noted in an interview at the time of the Duchene trade, “I mean he didn’t want to be a Colorado Avalanche anymore. Knowing the fact he didn’t want to play for the team anymore, you know, I think guys in the room were kind of waiting for it to happen too.” He added, “We all want to play for this team and win in Denver. He wanted to go somewhere else and that’s his right. Now we have the group in the room that will all be pulling the same rope in the same direction. Hopefully that’s a lot more wins showing up and the playoffs in the future.”
The NHL No-Trade Clause Debate Continues
Johnson is speaking to a debate that has taken over the NHL this season. Several players with no-trade or no-move clauses have asked for trades. Some have gotten them, while others are still waiting. NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman said the way these no-trade clauses are working is not how they were intended.
Players are increasingly demanding trades after signing long-term, lucrative deals. It’s a bad look for hockey and a tough spot for teams to be in, as many of the deals signed offered big commitments that, when not honored, make it hard for teams to trade the star and get full value.
Is Johnson right? Should players not be allowed to ask for trades after signing long-term, big-money deals? Hellebuyck suggested he knew the commitment he was signing at the time, but didn’t foresee the circumstances playing out in Winnipeg as they did. Is that excuse enough to sit out and walk away from the team that invested big money in the deal?
Matt Duchene Called Out by Ex-Teammate As NHL Trade Trend Gets Worse