Former Minnesota Wild defenseman Jack Johnson is taking the next step in hockey, and this one sends him back to the college game.
Ohio State has hired Johnson as an assistant coach for its women’s hockey program, giving the longtime NHL blueliner his first coaching job after a career that stretched nearly 20 years. He retired from the NHL in January, then moved into front-office work with the Vancouver Canucks as a professional scout before making this latest switch behind the bench.
Johnson’s path back to the NCAA comes after a brief run with Minnesota before the 2025-26 season. He signed a professional tryout agreement with the Wild, played in three preseason games and picked up one assist, but the team did not give him a contract after training camp. He never signed with another NHL club, and he did not appear in a regular-season game during the 2025-26 campaign before announcing his retirement earlier this year.
The 2022 Stanley Cup with Colorado stands out as one of the biggest moments of his career. That title made Johnson just the 19th player in NHL history to win his first Cup after reaching at least 1,000 career games.
He also had two separate runs with Columbus, first from 2011-18 and then again in the 2024-25 season. By the end of his playing days, Johnson had piled up 342 points, including 77 goals and 265 assists, along with 1,931 hits and 1,831 blocked shots.
Before the NHL, Johnson was a standout at the University of Michigan. He made the CCHA All-Rookie Team in 2006, earned First Team All-CCHA honors in 2007 and was named the CCHA Offensive Defenseman of the Year as a sophomore. He later returned to finish his degree in 2022.
The former No. 3 overall pick now brings that experience to Ohio State, where his hockey career has come full circle.
In Other News...
Charlie Stramel Is Forcing Wild Fans To Revisit That First Round Pick
Charlie Stramels name is coming back into focus for Wild fans because the first-round pick is no longer just a projection on a draft board. Over two seasons at Michigan State, the 21-year-old has taken a real step forward in production, showing the kind of growth Minnesota hoped to see when it took him 21st overall in 2023. The progress has been enough to keep him in the conversation, even if the conversation is still more about what he might become than what he already is.
The question now is what that means in Minnesotas bigger picture. Some evaluators still view Stramel as more of a future bottom-six center than a player who can drive a top line, and Bill Guerin has never been shy about moving prospects if the right deal comes along. Depending on how the roster shakes out, Stramel could wind up as a useful third-line center for the Wild or become part of the kind of trade package that helps address a more pressing need down the middle. [Read more 🡒]
Wild Fans Have Every Reason To Watch Maxim Shabanov Closely
Maxim Shabanov arrives in Minnesota with a rsum that makes him easy to notice and hard to ignore. The Wild brought him in on a one-year deal, and the expectation is that he begins as a winger in the middle six, giving the club another skilled option to sort into a lineup that could use more offense. His track record in the KHL is the kind that naturally gets attention, and it is already enough to make him one of the more intriguing newcomers on the roster.
What makes Shabanov worth watching is not just where he starts, but where he might be able to climb if things click. The Wild see him as someone who could work his way into a top-six role if he finds the right chemistry with linemates, which puts a premium on how quickly his game adapts to NHL pace and physicality. For a team looking for value and upside, that makes his first stretch in Minnesota feel especially important. [Read more 🡒]