Report: Blue Jackets, Ryan Johansen contract talks going nowhere
Columbus Blue Jackets president of hockey operations John Davidson said that contract negotiations between the team and center Ryan Johansen are going nowhere and the team is prepared to play without him.
The two sides have been unable to come to an agreement on a deal for Johansen, and last month, Davidson called the contract negotiations "absurd" and "embarrassing.”
Representatives for Johansen are asking for him to be paid $6.5 million per season and Columbus has offered between $3 million and $3.5 million per season.
“We are prepared to go with the guys we have,” Davidson said, according to the Columbus Dispatch.
Johansen scored a team-leading 33 goals and tallied 30 assists last season for Columbus, in his third season with the team. Columbus opens the regular season Thursday with a road game against the Buffalo Sabres.
- Scooby Axson