Wyatt Johnston’s name is getting harder to leave out of big conversations.
The Dallas Stars forward came up just short of Canada’s Olympic roster this past winter, even after putting together the kind of season that forces people to pay attention. Johnston finished with a career-high 45 goals and 86 points in 82 games, building on back-to-back seasons in which he topped 30 goals.
At 23, he’s already carved out a reputation as one of the NHL’s most dangerous finishers, and he gives a lot of the credit for that touch to retired forward Joe Pavelski.
“I learned so much from him,” Johnston told NHL.com of Pavelski. “He was so good at tipping pucks and in front of the net. It’s definitely a big reason I’ve had success on the power play.
“It’s about confidence. I mean, even hearing my name mentioned as an Olympic candidate, it helps you believe in yourself, although I always have.
(Stars general manager) Jim Nill, he was on the Team Canada staff, so he kept me updated on what was going on with the selection process. He was one of my biggest backers.
“Obviously, my main focus is winning a Stanley Cup for Dallas, but playing for your country, I would love that down the road.”
That national-team dream remains ahead of him. Johnston has never played for Canada at a major tournament, and he missed out on the Olympic team despite the surge in his game. He was one of several young Canadian talents on the outside looking in, along with Connor Bedard and Matthew Schaefer, while Macklin Celebrini made the cut and helped Canada win silver in Italy.
Johnston’s path to this point has been a steady climb. He put up 12 goals and 30 points in 53 games with the Windsor Spitfires in 2019-20 before COVID wiped out the following season. The Stars took him 23rd overall in the 2021 draft, and he followed that with a massive 2021-22 campaign for Windsor: 46 goals and 124 points in 68 games.
He played all 82 games for Dallas in 2022-23, then followed with the kind of production that confirmed he belongs in the upper tier of NHL scorers.
Dallas, meanwhile, still hasn’t gotten over the hump in the postseason. After three straight trips to the Western Conference Final, the Stars were bounced in the first round by the Minnesota Wild. Johnston had four goals and six points in six playoff games.
His place in the bigger Canadian picture is still taking shape, but he’s already part of the next wave. Johnston is among a promising group of young Canadian players expected to factor into the 2028 World Cup of Hockey conversation.
He also stands out financially among that group. Johnston is entering the second season of a five-year, $42 million contract with an $8.4 million cap hit, making him the bargain forward compared with his peers.
Celebrini signed a five-year, $94 million extension in July that carries an $18.8 million cap hit, while Bedard agreed to a five-year, $75 million deal last month as a restricted free agent, with a $15 million cap hit beginning this season. Schaefer, meanwhile, remains on his entry-level contract for two more seasons.