The Nashville Predators have traded Ryan Johansen (8 million AAV, two seasons left on contract) at 50% retained salary to the Colorado Avalanche for the signing rights to Alex Galchenyuk(UFA).
Predators Take:
The Preds save $4 million in cap space for the next two seasons. They are making this trade as they look to get younger and go through a bit of a retool. Alex Galchenyuk last season played 11 games for the Avs and had zero goals and assists. This seems to be purely a cap dump as the team adds some youth and has the potential to use that space in new GMs Barry Trotz’s vision.
Avalanche Take:
The Avs desperately needed a second line center, and if Johansen can go back to his 2021/22 percent play, this is a perfect fit for them. Last season Johansen played 55 games and scored 12 goals and 16 assists. This was a low-risk gamble that they could fit into their cap space while costing them nothing from the roster for next season.
