Jordan Binnington Trade: The Two-Jersey Goalie St. Louis Can't Keep
Jordan Binnington's .874 save percentage makes him one of the NHL's worst starters. His .917 at the Olympics makes him one of the best tourn...
By Mike Johnson · 9 min read
Mike Johnson
Senior NHL Insider & Trade Analyst
Mike Johnson is a Senior NHL Insider with over 15 years covering the league, focusing on salary cap analysis, trade rumors, and offer-sheet markets. He has broken stories on the 2025 Hughes-to-Wild trade narrative, the Kaprizov $17M extension cycle, and the 2026 RFA market reset. Mike fact-checks every article against PuckPedia, CapWages, NHL.com, and named insiders such as Elliotte Friedman, Frank Seravalli, Pierre LeBrun, and Daily Faceoff Rundown. Originally from Toronto, Mike played junior hockey before transitioning to NHL coverage. Follow him on X at @NHLTradeRumors. Editorial inquiries: editorial@nhltraderumorstalk.com.
Articles by Mike Johnson
Shesterkin Markstrom Goalie Fight: The $92M Haymaker That
Shesterkin beat Markstrom at MSG after training with undefeated pro boxer Sergey Novikov. Three goalie fights in ten weeks after a six-year...
By Mike Johnson · 9 min read
Yzerman Step Back Red Wings: The Architect's Ceiling
Friedman proposed moving Yzerman to president and promoting Draper or Horcoff to GM. But the Sakic Model worked because Sakic won first — Yz...
By Mike Johnson · 10 min read
Calgary Flames Offseason Trade Candidates: The Saddledome
Conroy sold Andersson, Weegar, and Kadri for 26 draft picks. Now Coleman, Frost, and Whitecloud are next — but the Saddledome Exit Strategy...
By Mike Johnson · 12 min read
Cale Makar Injury Update: The $18M Shutdown That Could Win
Cale Makar left Colorado's 9-2 win over Calgary with an upper-body injury and will miss the final 6 regular-season games. But this isn't a c...
By Mike Johnson · 9 min read
Bobby McMann Kraken Extension: The $5M Gamble
Bobby McMann has 7 goals in 8 games since joining Seattle. The Kraken want to extend him, but is his explosive start sustainable enough to j...
By Mike Johnson · 12 min read
McDavid Pillow Fight: The Pacific Division Problem
McDavid called the Pacific a "pillow fight" after losing 5-2 to Tampa. The real story: Edmonton's 77 points would rank 5th-7th in any other...
By Mike Johnson · 8 min read
Ovechkin 1000 Goals: The Last 16 That Define His Legacy
Ovechkin scored his 1,000th career goal, joining Gretzky as the only player to reach the milestone. But Gretzky's combined record of 1,016 i...
By Mike Johnson · 7 min read
Predators Not Expected Back: The NMC Trap Explained
Three Predators not expected back next season, but the NMC Trap complicates everything. Marchessault wants out, Stamkos refused to waive, an...
By Mike Johnson · 8 min read
Robert Thomas Trade: The Four-First Problem Explained
The Robert Thomas trade is coming this summer per LeBrun. The Blues want 4 first-round equivalents — but his full NTC suppresses the bidding...
By Mike Johnson · 9 min read
Hurricanes Not Expected Back: The Contender's Tax
Three Hurricanes not expected back next season. At 96 points and first in the Metro, Carolina must shed cap to keep its championship core in...
By Mike Johnson · 7 min read
Yegor Chinakhov Penguins: Extension Math for Crosby's Window
Chinakhov's RFA extension with the Penguins will cost $3.5-4.5M AAV. Cap math and Crosby window analysis inside.
By Mike Johnson · 7 min read
Jordan Kyrou Trade: Why the $8.125M Gamble Scares GMs
The Jordan Kyrou trade is coming this summer, but his production collapse from 36 goals to 14 changes everything. Full NTC, $8.125M AAV, and...
By Mike Johnson · 7 min read
Bobrovsky Panthers Extension: The 50% Pay Cut Coming
Bobrovsky's Panthers extension will be a 2-3 year deal at $4-5M AAV — a 50% pay cut from his $10M. The worst season of his career meets the...
By Mike Johnson · 9 min read
Cole Eiserman Islanders Contract: The 3-Year Rebuild Window
Cole Eiserman signed a 3-year entry-level contract with the Islanders on March 18. His ELC window overlaps with Schaefer's cheap deal and th...
By Mike Johnson · 9 min read
Matthew Knies Trade Deadline: Why Toronto Kept Him
Five teams had serious interest in Matthew Knies at the 2026 trade deadline. Toronto declined every offer while trading three veterans for p...
By Mike Johnson · 8 min read
Auston Matthews Surgery: The 12-Week Clock Toronto Can't Stop
Auston Matthews underwent MCL surgery in New York on March 19, with a 12-week recovery. But this countdown extends far beyond medical — it's...
By Mike Johnson · 8 min read
Leon Draisaitl Injury: What the Oilers' GM vs. Coach
Oilers GM Stan Bowman called Draisaitl's injury a "blessing in disguise." Coach Kris Knoblauch said the opposite on the same day. Here's wha...
By Mike Johnson · 8 min read
The 11-Game Paradox: Penguins 5-3-3 Math Without Crosby
Crosby returns from a Grade 2 MCL sprain after 11 games — but Pittsburgh's 5-3-3 record without him is the real story. The dependency gap is...
By Mike Johnson · 10 min read
Anthony Mantha Free Agency 2026: Contract Projection & UFA Analysis
Anthony Mantha posted career-high 26 goals and 52 points in 67 games on a $2.5M prove-it deal — but his 21.1% 5v5 shooting percentage agains...
By Mike Johnson · 11 min read