Colorado Avalanche defenseman Erik Johnson is irreplaceable. Unfortunately, even if he could play for the team for the next 20 years, that’s probably not advisable. So, at some point, the Avs are going to have to find a replacement for him.
Or, rather, they’re going to have to find ways to replace him. And I’m using the plural deliberately because I don’t think it will be simple or singular.
At 30 years old, Johnson is fast becoming one of the veterans on the team. Indeed, he’s the dad of the blueline. One forward, Carl Soderberg, is older and one goalie, Semyon Varlamov, is the same age.