Despite Connor Bedard keeping the Chicago Blackhawks interesting in 2023-24, the roster itself is one of the worst in the National Hockey League.
At 11-22-1, the Hawks are second-last place in both the Western Conference and overall NHL standings, with a minus-42 goal differential through 34 games.
It's no surprise that Chicago will be selling hard ahead of the NHL Trade Deadline on March 8, and they've reportedly already made a few players available. One of them is veteran forward Tyler Johnson.
“An NHL executive source has confirmed to Boston Hockey Now that the Chicago Blackhawks are letting it be known that center Tyler Johnson will be available on the NHL trade market,” reported Jimmy Murphy on Tuesday.
“The 33-year-old, 5-foot-8, 185-pound pivot is in the final season of a seven-year, $35 million cap hit. Johnson has accumulated $2,005,209 of his $5 million salary cap hit this season.”
Johnson has been decent for the Hawks in 2023-24, scoring seven goals and 11 points while playing every game. Lately, he's been centering the third line along with Ryan Donato and Colin Blackwell, while skating on the second powerplay unit along with Donato, Anthony Beauvillier, Lukas Reichel and Nikita Zaitsev.
Johnson has struggled to stay healthy with Hawks
The veteran Johnson won back-to-back Stanley Cups with the Tampa Bay Lightning in 2020 and 2021, and was traded to Chicago just days after the 2021 NHL Draft.
But he's struggled to stay healthy in his first two campaigns in the Windy City, playing just 26 games in 2021-22 and scoring seven points in that span. He got into 56 contests last season, upping his production to 12 goals and 32 points.
Johnson's best season came as a member of the Lightning in 2014-15; he scored 29 goals and 72 points in 73 games, breaking out on a line with Nikita Kucherov when the now-superstar was fresh into the league.
Johnson added 13 goals and 23 points in 26 Stanley Cup Playoff games, helping the Bolts reach the Finals. They ended up losing to these same Chicago Blackhawks in six games. It was the Hawks' third title in six seasons.
Although the player still has some juice left, it could be difficult for Chicago to deal Johnson. He reportedly has a 20-team no trade list, and would likely only fetch a late round pick at this stage in his career.
Still, it seems that Tyler Johnson's days in Illinois are numbered.
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