What enticed Ryan Johnson to sign with the Buffalo Sabres?

The Buffalo Sabres latest signee, Ryan Johnson, appeared to be heading straight for free agency, but he shocked us and signed with the Blue and Gold.

While 2022 first round picks Matt Savoie, Noah Ostlund, and Jiri Kulich signed mere weeks after the Buffalo Sabres drafted them, 2019 first round pick Ryan Johnson waited until just last week before signing. And while Johnson opted to play four seasons in college, he concerned many fans by waiting for a few weeks before he put pen to paper.

For a minute, it looked as though Johnson was going to test free agency, which has its respective advantages. He would have likely received offers from several teams, which would allow him to evaluate each organization before signing with the one whose situation was the best for him.

The lure of choosing any of other teams that may reach out would entice anyone to forgo signing with the organization that drafted them, and Johnson was captivated by the thought of choosing where to go, per Bill Hoppe of Buffalo Hockey Beat.

Why did Ryan Johnson ultimately choose the Buffalo Sabres?

We now know Johnson didn’t test the free agent market, despite its advantages of potentially landing in an ideal situation. So what made him choose to sign with Buffalo? A recent article from Hoppe revealed that answer, too. Consider the following quote:

"“There’s something special here with the staff and the culture this team has. It’s definitely trending on the upward, it’s noticeable.” – Ryan Johnson, via Buffalo Hockey Beat"

A few months back, I wrote that Johnson would be wrong to pass on the Buffalo Sabres. The defensive rotation at the NHL level was horrible, and there wasn’t much to get excited about at the AHL level, where Johnson will start his professional hockey career.

While the Sabres signed Nikita Novikov and Vsevolod Komarov, the overall amount of talent in the rotation both in Buffalo and Rochester is still spotty, with just three players in the Queen City slated to be long-term assets – Rasmus Dahlin, Mattias Samuelsson, and Owen Power.

Further, the likes of Joseph Cecconi, Austin Strand, Lawrence Pilut, and Jeremy Davies, despite a few of them making their presence felt in Rochester, are not long-term answers. That said, there are few situations better for Ryan Johnson than the one he’s getting with the Buffalo Sabres. Overall, he made the right decision.

Source: Sabres and city helped Ryan Johnson choose Buffalo: ‘Right in my heart’ by Bill Hoppe, BuffaloHockeyBeat.com