Wild trade Eric Staal for Marcus Johansson

The Minnesota Wild were expected to shake things up this offseason under new general manager Bill Guerin.

Guerin, who took over as Wild GM on Aug. 21, 2019, dealt Eric Staal to Buffalo for forward Marcus Johansson on Wednesday.

It’s Guerin’s second trade in his tenure, having dealt left wing Jason Zucker to Pittsburgh in February for defenseman Calen Addison, left wing Alex Galchenyuk and a 2020 first-round draft pick. Guerin also signed two defenseman, Jared Spurgeon in September and Jonas Brodin on Tuesday, to seven-year contracts.

Johansson, 29, spent just one season with the Sabres, where he had nine goals and 21 assists in 60 games.

The former first-round pick in 2009 (No. 24 overall) by Washington has played in 501 career NHL games, recording 102 goals and 290 points. His best season came in 2016-17 when, playing in all 82 games, he registered career highs of 24 goals and 58 points.

Johansson has also played with New Jersey and Boston. He recorded four goals and 11 points in the 2019 playoffs, when the Bruins lost in the Stanley Cup Finals in seven games.

Staal, 35, played four seasons with the Wild after signing as a free agent in July 2016. He posted 111 goals and 240 points in 311 games. This past year he had 19 goals and 47 points in 66 games and a goal and four assists in four playoff contests.

Staal saw his career rebound in Minnesota, notching 28 goals and 37 assists in 2016-17 and 42 goals and 34 assists in 2017-18. He was named an All-Star in both 2018 and 2020.

Both Johansson and Staal each have just one year remaining on their contracts.