NHLPA files contract termination grievance on behalf of Ryan Johansen

A response from the NHL Players’ Association on behalf of one of its members.

On Thursday, the organization announced it had filed a grievance for forward Ryan Johansen in regard to the Philadelphia Flyers terminating his contract.

Johansen was acquired by the Flyers in the trade that sent defenseman Sean Walker to the Colorado Avalanche back on March 6. However, Johansen never played a game for his new team. The Flyers put the 32-year-old on waivers almost immediately after the deal was finalized, but he was unable to report to the team’s American Hockey League affiliate, the Lehigh Valley Phantoms, due to an unspecified issue.

Then, last month, Philadelphia placed Johansen on waivers again, this time for the purpose of contract termination. In a statement, the team claimed a “material breach” led to their decision. The team has not commented on the situation since.

Back in April, Flyers general manager Danny Briere stated that Johansen’s time with the Flyers, and potentially in the NHL in general, was probably over.

“All I can tell you is I don’t expect him to be back,” Briere said, in a quote transcribed by Philadelphia Hockey Now’s Jon Bailey. “I don’t know, exactly, the situation. We’re dealing on the medical side with him … He doesn’t think he can play hockey.”

Prior to being traded, Johansen had scored 13 goals and 23 points in 63 games with the Avalanche and was set to surpass his 28-point performance from the 2022-23 campaign in his final year with the Nashville Predators.

Johansen had earned a reputation as one of the game’s top centermen during his time in Smashville. The Vancouver native hit the 50-point mark four times in his seven-plus seasons with the Preds, a mark he six times during his 13-year NHL career.

Johansen was taken fourth overall by the Columbus Blue Jackets in the 2010 NHL Draft, making the main roster before the 2011-12 season. The former Portland Winterhawk quickly became an efficient scorer with the Blue Jackets, scoring a career-high 71 points during the 2014-15 campaign. In Jan. 2016, he was traded to the Predators for Seth Jones in a one-for-one trade. Johansen would be traded again in June 2023, which saw him head to Colorado for Alex Galchenyuk.

In 905 games, Johansen scored 202 goals and 376 assists for 578 points. He also appeared in 67 Stanley Cup Playoff games, registering 54 points.