Tyler Johnson Jazzed About New Opportunity With Boston Bruins

BRIGHTON – It didn’t take long for Tyler Johnson to get adjusted to wearing Black and Gold.

For years, the 12-year NHL veteran has been a Boston Bruins nemesis, and key member of the two-time Stanley Cup champion Tampa Bay Lightning. But that was then, and this is now.

The versatile 5-foot-8, 185-pound forward now finds himself on the other side of the ice, auditioning for his old adversaries as part of a player tryout agreement (PTO). Johnson was in great spirits during his first full day of training camp at Warrior Arena on Thursday.  But even he admits doing a double take when he first pulled on a Bruins practice jersey.

“I’m glad to be here,” said Johnson, 34. “I obviously played a lot of meaningful hockey against this team. A couple of good playoff series, and a lot of regular season games. I used to hate Boston, but it’s going to be fun playing in front of a home crowd setting.”

Johnson spent the last three seasons with the Chicago Blackhawks. He netted 17 goals and 31 points in 67 games, finishing fifth on the team in scoring. An unrestricted free agent, he fielded several offers over the summer. But it wasn’t until the Bruins came calling that it seemed like the right fit.

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“I’ve always heard about how good this organization is,” said Johnson. “It exceeded expectations. Just the culture. You talk to guys around the league and continually hear about Boston. The way they play and come to the rink. A lot of times it’s just talk, but as soon as I got here it’s been very welcoming. All the guys are super nice. It’s all black and white. It’s been great so far.”

Johnson skated at left wing on Thursday, joining center Charlie Coyle and rookie Fabian Lysell. Although he didn’t formally introduce himself to the highly touted Bruins prospect beforehand, the pair huddled a few times much to Coyle’s chagrin.

“Obviously, (Lysell) is a very skilled player,” said Johnson. “Hopefully we can keep building off each other. He was asking a lot of questions. I answered a few. (Charlie) was probably getting a little annoyed by us, but we’re trying to make each other better.”

Lysell enjoyed the opportunity to skate with the two veterans.

“It was fun playing with those guys,” said Lysell. “They’re creative and super-fast.”

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Johnson is a highly versatile player capable of playing all three forward positions. He skated in 738 career NHL games with Chicago and Tampa Bay, totaling 193 goals and 431 points with a plus-20 rating. T also carries plenty of playoff savvy with 32 goals and 65 points in 116 career postseason games.

He arrives in Boston determined to make an impact and earn a spot on the squad.

“I think every point of my career, every point in my life, you always have to keep competing,” said Johnson. “The moment you stop, people take your job. It’s just doing the best I can and let things happen.”

The Spokane, Washington native signed with Tampa Bay as a free agent in 2011.  A member of the famed “Triplets Line,” along with Ondrej Palat and Nikita Kucherov, Johnson helped guide the team to back-to-back Stanley Cup championships in 2020 and 2021.

Adding Johnson to the roster was a key offseason move by Bruins General Manager Don Sweeney. He takes the place of Danton Heinen, who left for Vancouver as a free agent. Unlike Heinen, however, Johnson is more of an offensive threat. He broke the 20-goal plateau on four different occasions, including a career-best 29 goals in 2018-19.  He’s still capable of putting up 40 plus points over a full NHL season.

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A right-handed shooting left wing/center, Johnson could fit into a variety of roles throughout the Bruins lineup.  His veteran presence could also be a calming influence on a number of rookies, much like he did with Conor Bedard in Chicago last season. Johnson also provides plenty of power play punch potting eight goals and 16 points on the man advantage last season. That will certainly be a welcome addition to a team that could always use some added firepower.

“All those things are why all those guys play so long and why he’s so valuable,” said Bruins coach Jim Montgomery. “He made a lot of little subtle support plays (today), which has been his strength his whole career. He looks like he knew our D-zone coverage, which I don’t think he ever played in Tampa or Chicago. With his hockey sense he’s able to assimilate quickly, that’s why he played so long.”

The Bruins first-round draft pick (21^st overall) in the 2021 NHL Entry Draft, Lysell spent the past two seasons with the AHL Providence Bruins.  The 5-foot-11, 176-pound right winger showed tremendous progress going from 14 goals and 27 points in his first year, to 15 goals and 50 points in 56 games last season.

“He’s visibly stronger,” said Montgomery. “You can see him wanting puck more and more. That’s what we want. He’s an offensively gifted player. We want the puck on his stick. He did a good job competing for pucks (today).”

In the meantime, Johnson plans to earn his keep on Causeway Street, doing everything he can to make the club.

“I want to show that I’m a good player and can help this team,” said Johnson. “I want to be a part of something, especially a team like this that’s going for a championship. That’s all I can really do.”

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