Albert Johansson vs. anyone not named Moritz Seider or Simon Edvinsson
Albert Johansson, through no fault of his own, has his work cut out for him this season if he wants to see more than the inside of the press box.
It’s not fair that he was dealt this hand. The Detroit Red Wings organization, outside of Grand Rapids Griffins head coach Dan Watson, let him down.
You can argue all you want about winning is the most important thing, chasing playoffs that were never meant to be, and the value some old farts looking to send fans into cardiac arrest bring to the table was far more important than Johansson’s development. I won’t buy what you sell, so it’s a waste of everyone’s time. Johansson was robbed.
Before Johansson gets to the starting line to prove his worth to the club that drafted him, he has to hurdle at least Justin Holl (who likely gets the nod as a veteran and right-handed shot defenseman) or Jeff Petry (who is tied to Simon Edvinsson’s ankle, why, I don’t know—Petry’s just a great guy and the coach wants to see him not drown so why not make a rookie defenseman cover up another veteran’s mistakes, I suppose).
Moving up Erik Gustafsson to the second pair wouldn’t be ideal, but having Edvinsson play with him could help cover up any glaring holes in Gustafsson’s game. Also, Edvinsson is better at making plays (both in the offensive and neutral zones than he’s credited with in his tenure) and would provide more than just a stay-at-home defenseman to pair Gustafsson with while allowing Edvinsson to learn more about the offensive side of the game. There is plenty of untapped potential for Edvinsson to unlock and Gustafsson may be just the guy to help bring it out of Edvinsson.
Bringing up Gustafsson would open the perfect spot in the lineup for Johansson to get comfortable in the NHL and give him the best defense partner a newbie can get in the NHL.
In many ways, Johansson’s game mirrors Olli Määttä. They’re reliable, stable, and give pops of offense at times. Playing a mature game, they rarely leave anyone wondering, “What the heck were you thinking?”
On a team where players left me asking that very question every five to ten seconds, it would be refreshing to have a pair of defensemen who are there to reel things back in (especially from the second pair who might jump off the deep end from time to time and Lord only knows what Ben Chiarot is feeling on any given shift).
I think Määttä is a great mentor and a perfect fit for Johansson both on and off the ice.
Johansson is comfortable playing on both sides of the ice. As often as he played on the left side last season with the Grand Rapids Griffins, Johansson found himself on the right side. He didn’t seem to lose a step. A brilliant mind and above-average skill allow Johansson to play both sides of the ice with ease.
If anyone thinks the Detroit Red Wings are better without Johansson dressing every night, then I implore you to learn who Johansson is and what he brings to the table. He is everything the Detroit Red Wings need on the backend.
He will have some hiccups along the way, but he’s worth it in the long run and the Detroit Red Wings will be a better team because of Johansson.
These are the battles that I’m most looking forward to, but it’s your turn now. Who are you looking forward to watching battle in the Detroit Red Wings organization.