Johnston Vet Presence

[Alex 3,137]

 

                Just passed the halfway point of his third VHL season Alex Johnston has come a long way from when he was selected 8^th overall by the Calgary Wranglers in the S78 VHL draft. Following an offseason trade to a very young Helsinki team where he has almost immediately stepped into a leadership role. During his time with Calgary, he was named an alternate captain during his second and final season with the team, during that season Johnston really stepped into the role both on and off of the ice as his play picked up significantly and he really filled the role in the locker room. Although his tenure in Calgary was relatively short lived it certainly left its mark on the young winger and really helped them develop as a leader and as a player.

 

                After 144 games in Calgary, 31 goals, 48 assists, 79 points, and 312 hits Johnston would pack his bags in a blockbuster trade sending him to a young budding Helsinki Titans team. Here Johnston joined the extremely young core and has already surpassed his previous career highs in goals and points in only 41 games with 34 and 67 respectively. Johnston has had enough time in the league to learn a few valuable lessons that he will never forget and at the center of them is the importance of team morale as even if you’re not having the best season just being that voice in the locker room can go a long way to improving team outlook for the rest of the season and even down the road into the future.

 

                As Johnston is approaching his peak, his teammates should be just behind him making this Helsinki team one to fear in the near future. Currently Johnston is focused on improving his skating, strength, and physicality and once those get up there Johnston hopes to be considered one of the top two-way forwards in the league. Additionally, despite his efforts to play the body more Johnston has taken surprisingly few penalties with only 20 penalty minutes, while having 126 hits, just a fraction of those taken by other physical players around the league. Showing a real tendency to not take penalties, while still remaining physical compared to the previous season which is a real sign of growth on the ice.