SMALL IN STATURE, PLAYS BIG
Johnson Lightning’s playoff leader
Tyler Johnson is 5-foot-8. But if you think he is small today, picture what he looked like 10 or 15 years ago.
“He was tiny,” said Spokane Chiefs general manager Tim Speltz.
What Johnson lacks in size, he clearly makes up for in speed. His mother Debbie, who is a powerskating instructor, is a big reason for that. Almost every day, they would head down to Ice World USA in Spokane, Wash., hopping on before the Chiefs practised and then again afterwards. Johnson was a quick learner.
“He was always an exceptional skater,” said Speltz. “Always. That’s what separated him for sure. You would notice him as soon as you walked into the rink. He was flying out there at every level he played.”
As the years went by, Johnson became even faster. But he never really got any taller. If he did, Speltz and then-coach Mike Babcock used to say he would be a surefire NHLer. But at 5-foot-5, no one was even sure Johnson could play in the Western Hockey League.
When the Chiefs selected Johnson in the 11th round of the 2005 Bantam Draft, it was deemed nothing more than a pity pick. He was a local boy and he could skate and he had offensive skills. Maybe if he grew a bit and worked really hard, he could find his way on the team. Maybe.
“No other teams had expressed interest in him,” said Speltz. “We thought he was a player that had a chance to play. Johnny is small, but there is no ‘and.’ He’s got everything else. He skates, he’s intelligent, he works. He finds a way.”
Johnson, who was not picked in three straight NHL Entry Drafts because of his size and cut from at least two training camps, has found a way to not only make the NHL but make a difference in the playoffs.
It has always been this way for the Tampa Bay Lightning forward.
“You walk into that kid’s house and you look at the trophy mantle and all you see is trophies of where this kid has won,” said head coach Jon Cooper. “Winning follows that kid.”
Johnson won a Memorial Cup and was named playoff MVP as a rookie in the WHL, where he played a shutdown role against big-name stars like Claude Giroux and Nazem Kadri. He then won a Calder Cup with the American Hockey League’s Norfolk Admirals, again as a rookie. And after scoring a hat trick in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Final, he headed into Tuesday night’s NHL action leading the playoffs in scoring with 11 goals and 16 points. It sounds like a fairy tale. “It will be really a storybook if he’s lifting a 35-pound trophy over his head,” said Cooper.
In other words, the ending is still being written. But give it time. This might seem like a magical run Johnson is on, but talk to teammates and they will tell you that it has been building all season long.
The 24-year-old, who was a Calder Trophy finalist as a rookie last season, scored 29 goals and tied Steven Stamkos with a teamleading 72 points this season. But even when he is not scoring, he has been a difference-maker.
“He never takes a night off,” said defenceman Victor Hedman. “You always know what he’s going to give when he’s on the ice.”