Kim Johnsson

Birthdate: 16 March 1976
Birthplace: Malmo, Sweden
Height: 6'1
Weight: 205 lbs
Sweater Number: 5
Position: Defenseman
Drafted/Acquired: Acquired in August 2001 from the NY Rangers with Jan Hlavac and Pavel Brendl for Eric Lindros. Originally drafted in the 11th round (286th overall) by the NY Rangers in the 1994 Entry Draft.
Marital Status: ????

Career Notes

Swedish Career: Skated with Malmo of the Swedish League from 1993-94 to 1998-99, appearing in 196 regular season games, notching 20 goals and 26 assists for 46 points, along with 181 penalty minutes
International Career: Was a member of bronze medal-winning Team Sweden at the 2001 World Hockey Championships in Germany. Ranked second on the team, third among all tournament defensemen, and tied for seventh overall in scoring with eight points (4G,4A) in nine games. Was named to the First All-Star Team at the 2001 World Championships.
1999-2000: Ranked fourth among Rangers defensemen and tied for third among NHL rookie defensemen in points with 21 (6G,15A). Tied for third in the League among rookie defensemen in goals with six. Led all NHL rookies and ranked fifth on the Rangers in blocked shots with 116. Notched three assists on Mar. 19 at Pittsburgh, marking a career-high for assists/points in a game. Notched a pair of goals on Dec. 1 at New Jersey, marking the first multiple-goal/point game of his NHL career. Tallied his first NHL goal on Nov. 10 vs. Ottawa (Patrick Lalime). Collected his first NHL assist/point on Oct. 11 at NY Islanders . Made his Rangers/NHL debut on Oct. 1 at Edmonton.
2000-2001: Appeared in 75 games, registering five goals and 21 assists for 26 points, along with 40 penalty minutes. Established career highs in assists (21) and points (26), while ranking second among Rangers defensemen with 26 points. Ranked third on the Rangers and second among New York defensemen in average time on ice (21:16). Ranked third on the Rangers in blocked shots (122). Missed five matches from Nov. 4 to 15 due to a chip fracture in his hand. Posted a career-high three-game assist/point streak from Oct. 7 to 11, registering one goal and three assists over the span. Skated in his 100th NHL game on Dec. 8 vs. Buffalo.
2001-2002: Traded to the Flyers in August 2001. Named to Team Sweden for the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympics. Winner of the Barry Ashbee Award as the team's top defenseman. Played for Team Sweden at the 2002 World Championships in Sweden.

Profile

(January 2002) When the Flyers made the Eric Lindros trade official in August 2001, hockey pundits said that the production of Jan Hlavac and Pavel Brendl would determine the winner of the deal. Johnsson was a throw-in, the player that Bobby Clarke took when Glen Sather refused to part with Tomas Kloucek. Four months later, the Flyers are certainly not the clear winners in the trade, but it looks like any value for the Flyers from this deal will primarily come from...Kim Johnsson.

In his first season with the Flyers, Johnsson is enjoying a breakout campaign that has him (at the time of the writing of this article) third among all NHL defenseman in scoring. Along with Eric Weinrich, Johnsson has become a stalwart on the Flyer blueline. He regularly logs the most ice time of all Flyers, and his emergence has made the former #1 pairing of Chris Therien and Eric Desjardins into a virtual afterthought. His production has not gone unnoticed. In August he was a longshot to be named to Team Sweden, even though Sweden lack depth on defense. In December he was named to the team, and he'll play for Tre Kronor next month in Salt Lake City.

The Flyers have spent much of the last decade looking for a defenseman who could replace Mark Howe. They've auditioned quite a few players in his place. Steve Duchesne stuck around for a while, but he ultimately proved too "exciting" in his own end. Eric Desjardins took on a the mantle for a while, but he was never suited to be a #1 offensive defenseman: Rico's strength lies in his positional smarts and quiet determination. We had an over-the-hill Paul Coffey, who was never the same after colliding with a teammate. Could Kim Johnsson finally be the answer? That's a heavy weight to lay on any third year player. For now, let's simply say that Johnsson is showing himself to be more than potential. If he keeps up the good work, we'll revisit the case for saying, "He's the one."

Kim Johnsson

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