"Kent Johnson is a remarkable young man both on and off the ice," said Kekalainen. "He is a highly-skilled and creative player who can bring you out of your seat whenever he's on the ice. We're thrilled that he is taking the next step in his career and look forward to his growth and contributions as a Blue Jacket for years to come."
Johnson, 19, finished his college career with 17 goals and 47 assists for 64 points with 10 penalty minutes, seven power play goals, five game-winning goals, 127 shots and a cumulative +41 plus/minus rating in 58 games over two seasons at Michigan. He collected 8-29-37 with four PPG, four GWG, 74 shots on goal and was +25 in 32 outings in his sophomore campaign in 2021-22 to earn honorable mention All-Big Ten honors. He ranks fourth in the NCAA in assists-per-game (.91), eighth-T in assists and 17th-T in points-per-game (1.16) and was tied for the team lead in assists and points-per-game and ranked third-T in GWG and fourth-T in points.
A native of Port Moody, British Columbia, Johnson was named to the Big Ten All-Rookie Team and earned honorable mention All-Big Ten honors after collecting 9-18-27 in 26 appearances in 2020-21. He also ranked second in rookie scoring in the Big Ten and third in the nation among freshmen in points-per-game (1.04).
Johnson made his international debut for Canada in 2021-22. He represented the country at the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing, finishing fifth-T in the tournament in plus/minus rating, sixth-T in assists and seventh-T in points with 1-4-5 and +4 in five contests. He also skated for Canada at the 2022 IIHF World Junior Championships.
The 6-1, 165-pound center racked up 61-86-147 with 40 penalty minutes in 111 career outings with the Trail Smoke Eaters in the British Columbia Hockey League from 2017-20. He led the BCHL in goals, assists and points in 2019-20 with 41-60-101 and 14 power play goals in 52 contests during the 2019-20 regular season. He was awarded the BCHL's Most Valuable Player (Vern Dye Memorial Trophy), Top Scorer (Brett Hull Trophy) and Most Sportsmanlike Player (Bob Fenton Trophy) following his 2019-20 campaign.
FULL KENT JOHNSON STATS
