Searching for the top 6 center

Byfield isn’t going anywhere. If he were to ever be traded it won’t be cheap.

I think Svechkov could be the 2C we need, and he’s already here!

If we continue to suck, we really do have a chance to land a guy like Demidov (we’d have to be very bad) or maybe Helenius (if our pick is in the back half of the top ten). Those guys would be the elite level talents we need

Benson and kulich aren't on the table. Mittelstadt might be available, it's gonna depend on what the rest of the season looks like. If Thompson and cozens both come back and look like legit first and second line centers, it could be a tough decision to try to keep him and pay him, or see what he could bring back in trade. The Sabres do have other good prospects like savoie and ostlund- both centers, and rosen (a winger like benson). I don't know what Nashville would be offering, saros would likely be of interest depending on cost, and other Sabres fans have mentioned Sissons, but I don't see an obvious player other than that

IMO, I think NSH should be looking for a top line RW, a true #1 C and a top pair RHD(was really hoping for Severson). In terms of a #2C, I think we're set with one of ROR, Glass or Parssinen(also will have Svechkov in a few years time). For a #1C, I'd be looking for a guy like Horvat or Lindholm(someone who can play solid defense as well as score).

"In my opinion 2 years of tanking should be enough to become competitive again." Oh, honey...

Columbus and Nashville aren't in dissimilar positions, with a couple of good pieces on forward and D (Werenski and Josi, Forsberg and Gaudreau/Laine), but otherwise mostly young teams looking for a quick turnaround. Nashville has the (much) better goalie, Columbus has the better prospects, which makes sense considering we're 2 years ahead of Nashville in the rebuild. Hopefully both teams are competitive again in 2 years.

That said, Columbus doesn't look to move Johnson, or really any of the pieces you might be looking for, just because we're also coming out of a rebuild (in theory alone, right now). We also need top-6 wingers/centers with high upside, and additional futures don't do a lot for building around the new core that's already been in the system for 2-3 years, unless they're early-firsts or A prospects.

Teams with similar needs don't make great trading partners, so I don't think there's a package for Johnson that makes sense for both.