Tyler Johnson On Tenure With Blackhawks: ‘It Wasn’t Exactly What I Envisioned’

CHICAGO – Tyler Johnson didn’t sound like someone who would be coming back to Chicago next season. Johnson was one of the more vocal leaders on the team, someone who constantly talked of playing with pride and leaving everything on the ice. A two-time Stanley Cup champion, Johnson’s words were respected in the room and resonated.

But it doesn’t mean the losing wasn’t a grind–or that what Johnson potentially had when he was acquired back in 2021 went completely sideways by the end of the first month–of his first season with the Blackhawks. Due to be an unrestricted free agent, Johnson was honest about his time in Chicago.

“I’m obviously thankful for being here–I’ve met a lot of good people,” Johnson said.  But it wasn’t exactly what I had envisioned or wanted. It was way different. I met some really good people, made some really good friends that I’m going to have forever, so that’s been great.”

It’s hardly a ringing endorsement of returning, which is not only understandable–but inevitable.

A Different End Game Than When Tyler Johnson Arrived

When Johnson was acquired in 2021 by then general manager Stan Bowman, the Hawks were doing an about face in what looked like a rebuild and suddenly an-all in dealing for Seth Jones, Johnson, and Marc-Andre Fleury. It didn’t work. The Hawks limped to a 1-9-2 start, which ended up getting then head coach Jeremy Colliton fired by Kyle Davidson, who was then in an interim role. Bowman had been fired about two weeks earlier from the fallout of the Brad Aldrich abuse case.

So Johnson, who was brought in to relieve the Lightning cap crunch never had a chance to lead with his pedigree. Instead, the Blackhawks went into a full rebuild–and Johnson endured three rough seasons of losing, with each getting gradually worse.

Contrast that with his experience in Tampa Bay and it’s not difficult to see why Johnson doesn’t sound like he’ll be sticking around. When asked specifically, Johnson was forthright in his response–he misses competitive hockey–especially in the playoffs.

“I think that’s kind of hard–I guess it just kind of depends on who I talk to and what happens, but I’d like to play some meaningful hockey and get back in the playoffs,” Johnson said.  “I was talking with some of the guys the other day and just talking about playoffs just got me all ramped up. That’s where it’s all at and that’s where I’ve always loved.”

So if the Blackhawks choose to let him walk, there’s no hard feelings or anything other than both Johnson and Chicago are chasing very different things. The Blackhawks are unlikely to be a playoff team next season while Tyler Johnson is looking to chase the Cup sooner rather than later.

“I’ve always just wanted to be a part of that and when you’re not, especially the last three years here just doing what we’re doing’s been pretty tough,” Johnson said.  “I always try to stay positive with everything but it really just kind of grinds for a bit and I’d definitely like to try to get back to that.”

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