Could the Bruins strike gold two years in a row with a player on a PTO?
Last year Danton Heinen came back to Boston, where he started his career, on a professional tryout and emerged as a valuable and versatile part of the roster before signing with the Vancouver Canucks this summer.
Earlier this summer, Johnson told the Hockey News he was prioritizing joining a team that was likely to reach the playoffs.
“I’d like to play some meaningful hockey and get back in the playoffs…That’s where it’s all at. That’s where I’ve always loved,” he said. “I’ve always just wanted to be a part of that, and when you’re not, especially the last few years here doing what we’re doing, it’s been pretty tough.”
The Bruins will hope Tyler Johnson can deliver a similar impact. Don Sweeney announced that they signed the 34-year-old forward, who can play center or wing on Saturday.
Johnson, a 5-foot-8, 185-pound right-shot forward had 17 goals and 14 assists in 67 games for the Blackhawks last year. The Spokane, Washington native won two Stanley Cups with the Tampa Bay Lightning (2020 and 2021), before joining Chicago for the last three seasons.
SportsNet Canada listed him as the best free agent left available last week and wrote:
“The two-time Cup champ will need to accept a reduced salary on his next team, but he brings character, experience and the versatility of playing wing or centre.
We can see him playing third-line centre on a playoff team — which he would prefer to another rebuilding group.”
In his 12-year career — nine with the Lightning and three with the Blackhawks — he has 193 goals and 238 assists in 431 regular season games. He has three goals and nine assists in 30 career games vs. the Bruins. He has 32 goals and 33 assists in 116 postseason games.
He received votes for the Selke Award, three times early in his career and had five short-handed goals as a rookie.
He’ll likely compete for time on the third and fourth lines and the penalty kill.
