Jonas Johansson and the Tampa Bay Lightning feel well prepared for the frenzy—and opportunity— that awaits in January.
Johansson figures to be busy this month. Tampa Bay plays 15 games in 29 days, a run that includes four back-to-backs and added chances to patrol the blue paint.
“It’s really exciting. I feel great about it,” Johansson said of the schedule ratcheting up. “We have some games to catch up here to the other teams, so it’s nice to have all these games coming up here. It’s a fun part of the year.”
The Swedish goalie has played his best hockey of late.
Johansson is 4-1-1 in his last five starts, a run which includes a 36-save shutout over the defending Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers on Dec. 23 and a .944 save percentage in his last four starts.
Lightning goalie coach Frantz Jean has been impressed with Johansson’s work all season. Despite a few tilted periods earlier in the year, Johansson has played his role well for the Bolts.
"He's been actually really, really good. So for him, it's just a question of continuing the work he's been doing all year,” Jean said. “He’s been outstanding in practice. He's been outstanding the last few games. Just keep on rolling.”
Johansson holds a 4-2-1 record and is one of 43 NHL goalies to record a shutout this season.
Johansson’s father, Per Johan (PJ) traveled from Sweden for the Dec. 23 game in Florida to witness his son’s first shutout of the year in person.
The goalie is in his second year with Tampa Bay. He finished 2023-24 with a career-best 12-7-5 record, beginning the season as the team’s starter while net partner Andrei Vasilevskiy was injured.
Tampa Bay’s 34 games played are the fewest in the NHL ahead of January. Johansson looks to tack onto his Lightning legacy this season, especially as the team’s schedule heats up this month.
"I'm sure he's looked at the schedule for January, February, March and April. You look at the schedule till the end of the year, it's practically a game every second day,” Jean said. “So I think he looks at that and (is) pretty much able to circle where he's possibly gonna play.”
The 29-year-old goalie finished December with a .947 save percentage in three starts to pair with a 1.68 goals-against-average. Both numbers ranked in the top five for NHL goalies with at least two starts last month.
More starts allows a backup goalie to find more of a consistent rhythm to their game, Jean said. That means Johansson could improve upon what’s already been an impressive run.
"The challenge for a backup is really to get through the first period. Your reads are not as sharp, you're kind of trying to find the connection to the game. Some guys that have a certain experience are able to do this quicker. JoJo is pretty good at it,” Jean said.
“He’s been pretty good early in games this year. …You’d like to think the more he’s got to play, the more he’ll get in a rhythm and the easier it’s going to be for him to come out and be on top of his game.”
