Marcus Johansson’s last two contract negotiations have been prolonged, with the skilled forward filing for player-elected arbitration last season and going a similar route in 2013, remaining unsigned as a restricted free agent until the eve of training camp, when he inked a two-year, $4 million deal. It’s too early to tell how quickly Johansson and the Washington Capitals will come to a resolution this offseason, but the two sides have started discussions.
Johansson, a restricted free agent again, has new representation in CAA Sports’ J.P. Barry. Barry said he and General Manager Brian MacLellan spoke at the NHL Draft Combine, and early talks with the Capitals have revolved around settling on a term that both sides can agree on, with salary ideally falling in place after that. It’s early, especially with the salary cap for next season not announced yet.
“Does the team want to do a three-year deal, a four-year deal, a five-year deal? Then what does Marcus want?” Barry said. “That’s why we’re trying to find a term that everybody is comfortable with.”
“I know the language is, everybody wants to come back, everybody likes it here, but you know, money’s money,” MacLellan said a month ago. “I don’t think we’re gonna get a break. No discount.”
Johansson’s one-year deal worth $3.75 million was awarded in arbitration last summer, falling roughly between the $3 million requested by Washington and the $4.75 million filed by Johansson in the pre-arbitration briefs. If the Capitals and Johansson required an arbitration ruling again, it would be for a one-year deal again and Johansson would be an unrestricted free agent at its conclusion.
“He likes where he is and would love to find a way to stay there a little bit longer and work something out,” Barry said. “That’s why we’re doing our best. Once we can find a link that both of us are comfortable with, then I think things will get a little bit easier.”
Johansson’s $3.75 million arbitration ruling came after a breakout season, when he finished with 20 goals and 27 assists and played in every game. He maintained that production last season with 17 goals and 29 assists in 74 games, and Johansson displayed a greater versatility when he converted to center midway through the season and succeeded there.
MacLellan has indicated that Johansson’s future probably isn’t at center — he was at wing in the postseason — but with the Capitals wanting a more offensively reliable third line, Johansson could be a third-line center option again if that need isn’t filled in free agency. Johansson also plays on the top power-play unit, giving Washington another option for breakouts and often serving as the net-front presence.
“I see him as a guy that you can move around,” MacLellan said. “I like what the coaches have done with him. Ideally is he a center? Probably not unless we put there for an extended period of time. But he can play left wing, he can play center, he can play right wing, he can move up second line, he can play first line, he can play third line — he’s a versatile guy. He can take faceoffs, he plays the power play, he’s just a player that you can use in a lot of different situations.”
A third straight season with at least 40 points and a strong playoff performance (two goals and five assists) should help Johansson this offseason. One possible comparison is Toronto’s Nazem Kadri. Though a top-line center for the Maple Leafs, Kadri’s point totals are slightly below Johansson’s for the last two seasons and in April, Toronto extended Kadri for six years with an average annual value of $4.5 million.
“Whenever you’re talking about players like this, are they prepared to make a longer-term analysis?” Barry said. “That sort of the dialogue we’re having now. How do they project their lineup over the next three to five years? So, we’re just having that open discussion about that and the values.”
>>> It’s too early for the Capitals to extend qualifying offers to their restricted free agents, with teams typically waiting until closer to the June 27 deadline for that. MacLellan has indicated the intention is to re-sign all four of the team’s restricted free agents, as teams rarely part with those players. “I would assume they all come back as of now,” MacLellan said.
He’s recently talked at length about future roles for right wing Tom Wilson and defenseman Dmitry Orlov, both hitting restricted free agency this summer. On Orlov, MacLellan has said that he expects Orlov to move up in the lineup after mostly playing on the team’s third defensive pairing last season. Orlov’s development was set back by a wrist injury that caused him to miss the entire 2014-15 season, but he rebounded by playing 82 games this year and scoring eight goals with 22 assists, both career highs.
MacLellan has said that the Capitals want to turn Wilson into a Joel Ward-type player and that Wilson could be put in more offensive situations in the future. A former Washington player, Ward scored 21 goals to go with 22 assists with San Jose this season, and while Wilson’s production has steadily improved every campaign, the 22-year-old finished with seven goals and 16 assists in a mostly defensive role last season. His defensive zone play has taken significant steps with Wilson evolving into one of the team’s top penalty killers.
Wilson’s agent, Mark Guy with Newport Sports Management, said that preliminary talks with the Capitals have started, but they haven’t gone into great detail yet and he expects things will ramp up over the next several weeks.
“I think when you’re going through these negotiations with guys of Tom’s experience level, there’s a lot of variables that come into play,” Guy said. “A large part of the process is projections and what role a player is going to play going forward, but it’s largely based on what he’s done in the past and what other people around the league have done with similar experience levels. All those factors come into play, but definitely there’s some projection that comes into it.”
The restricted free agent facing the most uncertainty this summer is Michael Latta, as he was in the lineup just twice after the trade deadline. Latta was the team’s fourth-line center before the acquisition of Mike Richards, and in 43 games, he scored a career-high three goals and added four assists. With Latta making $575,000 last season, a qualifying offer to him would be at least $632,500.
“He’s gotta be frustrated,” MacLellan said in May. “I think he’s a great teammate, guys love having him around, coaches like him. I think the key for him is he’s gotta bring something besides energy in that fourth-line role. He’s got to kill penalties, there’s got to be another dimension to his game for him to be successful in the league.”
