Blue Jackets' Kent Johnson now has the NHL's attention, forcing him to adjust

COLUMBUS, Ohio At the start of the season, Kent Johnson was the Columbus Blue Jackets most explosive offensive player, a puck-carrying, playmaking machine who seemed to somehow unlock his full potential over the course of one offseason.

Even when Johnson missed 14 games with a shoulder injury beginning in mid-October, he returned looking as if he hadnt missed a beat.

Two goals in a win over Tampa Bay on Nov.

21.

Two assists two nights later in a shootout win over Carolina .

Two goals, including the game winner, in a 4-1 win at Winnipeg on Dec.

8.

Advertisement It doesnt take many multi-point games before the rest of the league takes notice, especially coaches.

Certainly, its Zach Werenski who is most discussed when opponents prepare to play Columbus .

But Johnson wouldnt be far behind.

Johnson has cooled off over the last three weeks, he acknowledges, and its due in part to how other teams are strategizing to play against the Blue Jackets.

Teams are trying to not let me skate the puck through the neutral zone as much, Johnson told The Athletic late last week.

If there are a couple of forwards back (forechecking), theres usually a guy whos pretty tight on me.

Thats the biggest difference.

Theres no simple way to stop a player with Johnsons considerable skill set.

But now its up to him and the rest of the Blue Jackets to adjust to the opponents adjustments, and theyll try again Tuesday when they play the Pittsburgh Penguins at PPG Paints Arena.

Kent Johnson scores and has points in all nine games hes played this season! #CBJ pic.twitter.com/2SlDgOqlSR FanDuel Sports Network Columbus (@FanDuelSN_CBUS) December 1, 2024 In his first 16 games of the season, Johnson had nine goals, nine assists, 18 points, a plus-2 rating and 38 shots on goal, about 2.4 per game.

Over the last 10 games, he has 1-3-4, a minus-9 rating and 14 shots on goal, or 1.4 per game.

Blue Jackets coach Dean Evason has been around long enough 803 NHL games as a player, 747 games as a head coach in the pros that he knew to expect this.

Thats what wed do, right? Evason said with a chuckle.

(Johnson) does such a good job transporting (the puck) through the neutral zone, so theyre putting more heat on him.

But hes been doing a good job of recognizing when to carry it and when to get it passed.

Hes not turning pucks over, so its not a concern for us.

Would we like him to enter the zone with possession? Sure.

Hes been that guy who does it as well as anybody on our team.

But its not always there.

Advertisement The adjustment is not just Johnsons to make.

Early in the season, with Johnson skating more freely than he is now, the top concern for other players on the ice was staying onside and keeping their stick blades on the ice.

Johnson, with his world-class hands and greasy hips, could skate through and around even multiple defenders if he picked up speed coming up the ice.

Now Johnson needs other players to serve as pressure release valves so the Blue Jackets can gain the zone with possession.

Its nothing crazy, but teams are trying to limit my touches and limit me skating the puck up (the ice), Johnson said.

If Im getting pressure, it helps other guys get open, hopefully.

But, yeah, its less touches for me.

The major concern with Johnson in his first two pro seasons was that his slight frame would have trouble surviving against larger, more physical players.

He arrived in Columbus this fall, though, looking noticeably thicker (6 foot, 180 pounds) and noticeably quicker on the ice.

Good thing, too.

Hes drawing 17 minutes, 44 seconds of ice time per game, third among Blue Jackets forwards behind Sean Monahan (19:37) and Kirill Marchenko (18:41).

Right away, early in the season when I was playing good and getting points, I felt like I was getting hit more than other (NHL) years, Johnson said.

Thats what you expect, and its something Ive learned to deal with at every level.

In recent games, the Blue Jackets have been carried offensively by their top offensive line Monahan centering Dmitri Voronkov and Marchenko and, of course, defensemen Werenski.

The other lines have struggled to play with identities, in part because Evason has favored an 11-forward, seven-defensemen alignment.

Johnson has recently played mostly with center Cole Sillinger and veteran winger James van Riemsdyk .

Last week, when the Blue Jackets went to a shootout versus the Carolina Hurricanes, Evason sent Johnson out for a shot in the third round, when the Blue Jackets needed him to score to keep the game alive.

He scored through goaltender Pyotr Kochetkov s pads.

Sick Kent Johnson shootout move..pulls it wide then slings it on the ice.

High level stuff.

He had to score there.

Columbus goes to win shootout.

They have 38 points.

2 points out of the playoffs.

pic.twitter.com/DXejHHf3M7 BucciOT.Com (@Buccigross) January 1, 2025 The Blue Jackets are 17-17-6 and hovering around a wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference.

A win Tuesday would push them over .500 for the first time since Dec.

4.

Theyll need all hands on deck, though.

The Blue Jackets have lost 15 consecutive games (0-10-5) in Pittsburgh, dating back to the 2015-16 season.

I dont think were surprising anybody as a team anymore, Evason said.

Its the National Hockey League, so teams are playing us hard every night and playing hard against our entire team.

(Photo: Michael Reaves / Getty Images).

This article has been shared from the original article on theathleticuk, here is the link to the original article.