The New Jersey Devils traded Marcus Johansson to the Boston Bruins, home to Brad Marchand, who concussed Johansson last season.
Bruins get: LW Marcus Johansson
Devils get: 2019 second-round pick, 2020 fourth-round pick
Bruins: B
The Bruins added Johansson after dealing for Charlie Coyle from the Wild. It appears the plan is to use Coyle as their No. 3 center, which means that Johansson could slot in next to David Krejci on the Bruins' second line.
Johansson is an interesting addition. He's a 200-foot player, but a streaky one offensively. He has 12 goals and 15 assists in 48 games for the Devils this season, and 41 points in 77 games since coming over from the Washington Capitals in 2017. What makes Johansson a distinctive talent is his ability to play up and down the lineup: effective in a bottom-six role, but also able to hang with the elite talents on a team like he did with the Capitals.
The 28-year-old is also an unrestricted free agent this summer.
The key stat for Johansson with the Devils might have been 48 games, as he had trouble staying healthy. Of course, it didn't help that Brad Marchand concussed him, costing him three months. Please recall Johansson calling the hit "stupid" and saying the hit "has nothing to do with hockey and it's sad to see." Please recall that Marchand and Johansson are now teammates.
Of course, this being the NHL, these kinds of hatchets are usually buried on day one between new teammates.
Devils: C-minus
The Devils acquired Johansson in July 2017 for a second-rounder and third-rounder in the 2018 draft. The Capitals were in a cap crunch, and the Devils anted up for a player with term.
This time, Johansson is two years older and on an expiring contract. So, getting a second for him is fairly good, while getting a fourth was the best other piece they could muster, apparently. The prices for this tier of forwards -- Wayne Simmonds and Derick Brassard among them -- cratered on deadline day. Perhaps GM Ray Shero waited too long to pull the trigger.