Senators acquire goalie Jonas Johansson after losing Leevi Merilainen on waivers
Ottawa sent future considerations to Tampa Bay for the 31-year-old Swedish netminder to restore organizational depth.
OTTAWA — The Ottawa Senators acquired goaltender Jonas Johansson from the Tampa Bay Lightning on Friday, hours after losing Leevi Merilainen on waivers to the Vancouver Canucks.
The Senators sent future considerations to Tampa Bay in the trade.
Johansson, 31, has played 105 NHL games since starting his career with the Buffalo Sabres in 2019-20, also spending time with the Colorado Avalanche and Florida Panthers.
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He posted an 11-10-2 record with a 3.29 goals-against average and an .884 save percentage in 25 games for the Lightning last season.
“That’s part of the league,” Senators head coach Travis Green said after his club skated Friday at the Canadian Tire Centre. “You’ve got players that you sometimes put on waivers. You want a goalie that can play well. There is nothing else you can see or want to see. You want a goalie that can play well.”
Green had told reporters before Merilainen was claimed that the Senators had no intention of keeping three goalies on their NHL roster, with Linus Ullmark as the starter and Samuel Ersson signed to a two-year deal to be the backup.
That left Merilainen, who has a one-way contract worth $1.1 million U.S., as the odd man out.
The 24-year-old Merilainen was shelled for six goals on 27 shots in a preseason loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs on Wednesday.
He played 20 games for Ottawa last season, posting an 8-10-1 record with a 3.51 goals-against average and an .860 save percentage.
In 34 career NHL games, Merilainen had a 16-14-3 record with a 3.00 goals-against average, an .885 save percentage and three shutouts.
Johansson, who is six-foot-five and 217 pounds, is in the final year of a two-year contract carrying a $1.25 million salary cap hit.
He has already cleared waivers, so the Senators can assign him to their American Hockey League affiliate in Belleville without difficulty.
Senators president of hockey operations and general manager Steve Staios had identified Johansson as a possible acquisition if the team lost Merilainen.
The move restores organizational depth after Ottawa also let goaltender Mads Sogaard walk in free agency.
Johansson gives the Senators three Swedish goaltenders in their system, alongside Ullmark and Ersson.
Ottawa still has Vadim Zherenko in camp on a professional tryout, while youngsters Jackson Parsons and Kevin Reidler are also in the organization's goaltending picture.
If the Canucks try to send Merilainen to their AHL affiliate in Abbotsford, B.C., the Senators would have the right to claim him back.
Merilainen was a third-round selection by Ottawa in the 2020 NHL Entry Draft and won a silver medal with Finland at the 2022 world junior championship.
Johansson was originally a third-round pick (61st overall) by Buffalo in the 2014 NHL Draft.
His most recent outing was against the Senators in April, when he gave up five goals on 31 shots in a 6-2 loss.
NHL teams must declare their final 23-man rosters by 5 p.m. on Monday.
With files from Ottawa Citizen, Sportsnet and Yahoo Sports