In the span of about an hour on Monday, the Red Wings dumped an under-performing veteran forward and re-signed a promising young defenseman.
Detroit has signed 24-year-old Albert Johansson to a two-year, $2.25 million deal after he showed significant growth as a rookie. Johansson was plugged into the Red Wings' lineup on a full-time basis in January after an injury to Jeff Petry and played steady minutes on the blueline for the rest of the season.
Johansson finished with three goals, nine points and a minus-11 rating in 61 games, but held his own against some tough competition and showed the pace and poise to keep up with the NHL game. Red Wings head coach Todd McLellan often called him one of the best surprises of the season.
A second-round pick in 2019, Steve Yzerman's first draft class, Johansson is a left-hand shot who slots in behind Simon Edvinsson and Ben Chiarot.
The move to secure Johansson came shortly after the Wings traded Vladimir Tarasenko and his $4.75 million cap hit to the Wild for future considerations.
The Red Wings have two more restricted free agents they would like to re-sign before free agency opens Tuesday in forwards Elmer Soderblom and Jonatan Berggren.