Nick Johnson

Nicholas VanCuran Johnson (born December 24, 1985) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey forward who played in the National Hockey League (NHL) with the Pittsburgh Penguins, Minnesota Wild and the Phoenix Coyotes.

Playing career He was drafted by the Pittsburgh Penguins 67th overall in the 2004 NHL entry draft. Before being drafted, Johnson played for the St. Albert Saints of the Alberta Junior Hockey League. After graduating high school and being drafted, Johnson played four seasons with Dartmouth of ECAC Hockey in the NCAA. Following his final season at Dartmouth, Johnson signed a two-year, entry-level contract with the Penguins on March 25, 2008. He shortly began his professional career with affiliate the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins of the American Hockey League.

In the 2009–10 season, Johnson scored his first career NHL goal in his NHL debut on January 21, 2010, with the Penguins against the Washington Capitals. He played in 6 games with the Pittsburgh before returning the Wilkes-Barre. On June 7, 2010, he was re-signed to a one-year contract with the Penguins.

On September 29, 2011, Johnson was claimed off waivers by the Minnesota Wild. In the 2011–12 season, Johnson earned a regular checking line role on the Wild, playing in a career high 77 games to recorded 8 goals and 26 points.

Despite his successful season with the Wild, Johnson was released as a free agent and on July 11, 2012, he was signed on a one-year, two-way deal with the Phoenix Coyotes. With the NHL lockout in effect, Johnson signed for a brief stint with the Idaho Steelheads of the ECHL. Upon conclusion of the lockout he was assigned to AHL affiliate, the Portland Pirates. He was later recalled by the Coyotes in the shortened 2012–13 season and appeared in 17 games for the Coyotes before on March 13, 2013, he was put on waivers and reassigned to Portland.

On July 5, 2013, Johnson was signed to a one-year, two-way contract with the Boston Bruins.

On July 9, 2014, Johnson left the Bruins organization after one season and signed his first contract abroad on a one-year deal with the Växjö Lakers of the Swedish Hockey League.

Career statistics Regular season Playoffs Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM 2002–03 St. Albert Saints AJHL 60 21 30 51 10 — — — — — 2003–04 St. Albert Saints AJHL 51 35 36 71 33 4 0 2 2 0 2004–05 Dartmouth College ECAC 35 18 17 35 16 — — — — — 2005–06 Dartmouth College ECAC 33 15 10 25 24 — — — — — 2006–07 Dartmouth College ECAC 33 14 16 30 46 — — — — — 2007–08 Dartmouth College ECAC 32 10 25 35 20 — — — — — 2007–08 Wilkes–Barre/Scranton Penguins AHL 4 0 1 1 0 10 0 1 1 2 2008–09 Wheeling Nailers ECHL 18 14 10 24 19 — — — — — 2008–09 Wilkes–Barre/Scranton Penguins AHL 56 14 17 31 30 12 4 6 10 8 2009–10 Wilkes–Barre/Scranton Penguins AHL 61 16 27 43 50 4 4 0 4 2 2009–10 Pittsburgh Penguins NHL 6 1 1 2 2 — — — — — 2010–11 Wilkes–Barre/Scranton Penguins AHL 48 20 19 39 49 — — — — — 2010–11 Pittsburgh Penguins NHL 4 1 2 3 5 — — — — — 2011–12 Minnesota Wild NHL 77 8 18 26 45 — — — — — 2012–13 Idaho Steelheads ECHL 5 0 1 1 0 — — — — — 2012–13 Portland Pirates AHL 14 3 6 9 13 3 2 1 3 9 2012–13 Phoenix Coyotes NHL 17 4 2 6 0 — — — — — 2013–14 Providence Bruins AHL 51 18 24 42 16 12 1 4 5 0 2013–14 Boston Bruins NHL 9 0 0 0 0 — — — — — 2014–15 Växjö Lakers SHL 55 17 21 38 14 18 4 5 9 8 2015–16 Brynäs IF SHL 52 22 12 34 16 3 3 2 5 0 2016–17 Brynäs IF SHL 39 7 11 18 16 5 0 0 0 2 AHL totals 234 71 94 166 158 41 11 12 23 21 NHL totals 113 14 23 37 52 — — — — — SHL totals 146 46 44 90 46 26 7 7 14 10

Awards and honors Award Year All-ECAC Hockey Rookie Team 2004–05 All-ECAC Hockey First Team 2007–08