After a dream season in Colorado, veteran defenseman Jack Johnson is signing with the Chicago Blackhawks, multiple league sources told The Athletic on Tuesday. The deal is for one year, and the Blackhawks are expected to announce it Wednesday.
Johnson, 35, played 74 regular-season games for the Stanley Cup champion Avalanche in 2021-22, tallying one goal and eight assists while compiling a plus-5 rating. Johnson’s lone goal was Colorado’s first of the season and came on a breakaway against the Blackhawks, his new team. Though underlying numbers haven’t been high on Johnson for years, the Avalanche viewed him as a sturdy option who could kill penalties and provide bottom-pair minutes. He celebrated his 1,000th career game during the regular season.
Initially the odd man out of the lineup during the playoffs, Johnson slotted in in the second round when Samuel Girard suffered a broken sternum. Johnson played Colorado’s final 13 playoff games, averaging just over 11 minutes of ice time and posting a plus-1 rating with zero points. With a star-powered defensive core, the Avalanche didn’t need him to do much more in the postseason than kill penalties and avoid mistakes. For the most part, he did that. And he can always say he was on the ice for Artturi Lehkonen’s game-winning goal in a decisive Game 6 against Tampa Bay.
Johnson spent the peak of his career with the Columbus Blue Jackets, with whom he averaged more than 23 minutes a game and tallied 40 points in 2014-15, two off his career high (42 in 2010-11 with Los Angeles). He started his career with the Kings and, after 445 games with Columbus, had stops with the Penguins and Rangers. He came to the Avalanche on a professional tryout contract and earned a roster spot at training camp ahead of the 2021-22 season.
The rebuilding Blackhawks will likely give Johnson more opportunity for playing time than the Avalanche. He’ll reunite with defenseman Seth Jones, whom he played with in Columbus, and forward Patrick Kane, whom he played with on the U.S. team at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics. As a No. 3 pick and someone with Stanley Cup and Olympic experience, his off-ice presence will likely be welcome in a young Chicago dressing room.
“He has a great mind for the game,” Jones said during the lead-up to Johnson’s 1,000th game. “He was definitely a voice and someone defensemen looked up to when he played there in Columbus for us.”
(Photo: Ron Chenoy / USA Today)
Read More: Blackhawks signing veteran defenseman Jack Johnson: Sources