Contract talks between Jarmo Kekalainen and Ryan Johansen's camp haven't been going well, and as such they've hit a standstill.
I've sort of beaten this horse to death, but from Day 1 I said this would be a tricky negotation because Johansen is looking to cash in on last season's success and sign a long-term deal, while the Jackets want a bridge prove-it contract. With that in mind, it should come as no surprise that, well, the two sides couldn't be farther apart.
#CBJ talks w RFA Ryan Johansen have not progressed beyond initial offers from each side. They're galaxies apart on term / money. #stilljuly
— Aaron Portzline (@Aportzline) July 8, 2014I think that note from Aaron Portzline more or less confirms what we've all suspected. Initial offers were made, neither side liked what they saw and now they're going to sit on it. This has always been a negotiation that would take time, so it's not exactly shocking to see it drag out.
When you factor in that only a handful of teams are able to offer sheet Johansen (many don't have cap space or the draft picks necessary for compensation) there's not much urgency to get this done from the Blue Jackets perspective.
They have cap space so they can match anything should an offer sheet come, so Kekalainen has the leverage here and he's smart to use it.
I think ultimately what we'll see is Kekalainen will budge a little bit on the dollars, but will make sure Johansen accepts a short-term deal.
Only time will tell, and we might have to wait a while.
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