Johnson has been dealing with an upper-body injury throughout the preseason and could miss the Lightning’s opener vs. the Panthers on Saturday. With Johnson out during Monday’s practice, Mathieu Joseph skated in his spot on the third line.
The Hurricanes were reportedly far apart in their contract negotiations with Lindholm, who is an RFA. With no contract in sight, the Hurricanes elected to move on from the former No.5 overall pick (2013), who has averaged just 14 goals and 28 assists (42 points) over the last four seasons. Matt Cane of HockeyGraphs predicts a five-year extension worth $24.98M ($4.978M AAV) for Lindholm.
Wahlstrom was a YouTube sensation before his 10th birthday and has since become a star for the United States Development Team. Wahlstrom had 48 goals and 46 assists (94 points) in 62 games with the U.S. National U-18 team. Wahlstrom has outstanding hands, but still needs to polish his defensive game.
Jokiharju, 19, was a first-round pick of the Blackhawks (No.29 overall) in 2017 and is coming off of a 71-point (12G / 59A) campaign with the Portland Winterhawks (WHL). His 71 points ranked tied for third among defensemen in the WHL and represented a 0.45 point-per-game increase from his rookie season. Jokiharju will likely battle for a spot on the Blackhawks’ blueline this fall, but will likely end up back in Portland.
