Jack Johnson
Position: Defense
Shoots: Left
Height: 6’1
Zodiac Sign: Capricorn
With the dawn of a new season and a new roster, I figured we should know more about who we are cheering for on the ice. To kick off the series in player profiles is #3, Jack Johnson.
The 34-year-old defenseman is joining the Avs this year after an injury-riddled season with the New York Rangers. He signed with the Avs as a Professional Tryout after not receiving any offers during the offseason.
Shortly after John Johnson III was born in Indianapolis, ID, on January 13, 1987, his family relocated to Michigan. Growing up in Red Wings Country during the 90s, we can only assume that he might not have loved the Avs from a young age as much as we would like. Growing up, Johnson attended the boarding school Shattuck St. Mary’s in Minnesota, where he played with Sidney Crosby and was drafted 3rd overall by the Carolina Hurricanes in 2005.
Johnson played his freshman and sophomore year at the University of Michigan, setting the school’s record for a freshman defenseman with 32 points and 149 penalty minutes, and most goals by a sophomore defenseman with 16. Through drafted by the Hurricanes, his rights were traded while playing in Michigan, and he entered the NHL during the 2006-2007 campaign with the Los Angeles Kings. During his rookie year, he lived with former Av defenseman Rob Blake at his house in Manhattan Beach. It sounds like an excellent way to break into the NHL.
In 2010 Johnson won the Silver Medal with Team USA in the 2010 Olympic Games in Vancouver, and ended the 2010-2011 season with a career-high of 42 points, and was traded to the Columbus Bluejackets in 2012, where Jared Bednar was assistant coach to the Bluejacket’s AHL team affiliate, the Springfield Falcons. Johnson would play in Columbus till 2018, where he signed with the Penguins during free agency. After two fairly unproductive years in Pittsburg, he signed with the Rangers in 2020.
Off of the ice, Johnson filed Chapter 11 Bankruptcy in 2016. After entering the NHL, Johnson gave power of attorney over his finances to his mother, where she and John Sr. took out high-interest loans with their son’s future earnings causing the hockey player to fall into debt by the millions. Johnson said he had no knowledge of this spending and filed for bankruptcy. While he did not pursue any legal actions with his family, he did against the investment firms that allowed his parents to make such drastic financial decisions. In 2016 he liquidated major assets and agreed to keep $246,000 of his salary for two seasons, which made him the lowest-paid player in the league for those years. While Johnson’s financials have no impact on his play, nor is his income of any significance to us, his story is worth noting because while NHL players may have multi-million dollar contacts, it doesn’t automatically make them millionaires or set for life. Rather than scolding his parents for unwise spending, the firms that take advantage of people should be held accountable, as Johnson thankfully took action against them.
Aside from the fact that we hope Johnson has sorted out his financial situation for his own sake, what we want to know is how Johnson will benefit the Avs? While it pains me to say he is an older player at the young age of 34, he is getting towards the geriatric age for professional hockey players (they can’t all be Tom Bradys); Johnson will bring more veteran leadership to the team. He knows what he is doing after over 950 games in the NHL; you don’t make it through 14 seasons in the NHL on accident. He might not be a flashy player, but he will make an effort just like his Capricorn zodiac qualities tell us: by hard work and dedication. Scoring the season’s opening goal for the Avs and being married to the sister of former Bronco QB Brady Quinn can only mean good things for Johnson and the Avs. Ok, so maybe you don’t know who Brady Quinn is because he never actually played in any games for the Broncos, but he was on the roster nonetheless, and that counts for something. Welcome to the team, JJ!