Penguins defenseman Jack Johnson still has critics, but he's more comfortable in Year 2

This is a story about Jack Johnson.

It will elicit a lot of responses online.

Many will be negative.

Some will be positive.

Several will be confused if they searched Google for information on the singer/surfer from Hawaii of the same name.

A handful will be indifferent.

Johnson, the Penguins defenseman, probably will be in the latter category.

“I don’t even have Twitter,” Johnson said. “That’s just not part of my world. I’m not really up to speed with technology. I’m just a little bit more old school that way. I phone and text message. That’s about it. I’m not even great with e-mails.”

A lot of Johnson’s critics suggest he wasn’t great at playing hockey last season — the first of a five-year, $16.25 million contract.

Actually, they didn’t just suggest it. They screamed it through pixels, hashtags and charts with terms like Corsi and Fenwick.

Well before warnings came out not to search your name on Twitter, Johnson learned not to look his name up on Google during the early stages of his career in the late 2000s.

“It’s not part of my day,” Johnson said. “It’s not part of it. To me, it’s something that’s non-existent. So it’s not hard to ignore.”

Harsh evaluations of Johnson weren’t without merit, particularly as it pertains to advanced statistics. Last season, he was on the ice for a team-high 1,407 shot attempts against in five-on-five play, according to Natural Stat Trick.

Being a healthy scratch for the first game of a humiliating four-game sweep at the hands of the New York Islanders did little to quell barbs thrown at Johnson.

A would-be multiplayer trade — involving Johnson — to the Minnesota Wild in June fell through after former teammate Phil Kessel nixed it as part of the no-trade clause in his contract.

Trade rumors persisted into the preseason when Johnson was used as a “fourth pairing” defenseman during training camp practices.

Johnson didn’t dismiss the possibility of being traded. He just didn’t devote much mental energy to it.

“You never know,” Johnson said. “Was there a possibility of being moved? Yeah. I mean, I got traded six months into a seven-year deal (with the Los Angeles Kings). That’s how I wound up in Columbus. That’s not something I’m ignorant to. You always know that it’s a possibility you could get moved.

“Am I going to worry about it? No. Because there’s no sense of worrying about it. That’s the best way I can answer that. I was never worried about it or stressing out about it. I came to the rink and enjoyed my time here while that stuff was going on. I just wanted to play the best I could while I was here. Enjoy my teammates, enjoy being here. I’ve loved every minute I’ve been here.”

Johnson’s time in his second year with the Penguins appears more enjoyable than the first year.

With defenseman Brian Dumoulin sidelined because of a left ankle injury, Johnson has served as defensive partner to All-Star Kris Letang for the better part of two months.

“We all heard the stuff (criticism),” said Letang, himself a fairly frequent target of online critiques. “But there’s a reason why (general manager Jim Rutherford) signed him for a long-term deal and the money he got. Jack is a reliable guy that is going to give you the same thing every time. Sometimes, people don’t see that because a defensive defenseman doesn’t really get credit for it. They see a lot of numbers and they don’t quite understand everything. As teammates, we all know what he brings to the game. He’s a huge part of our team.”

Johnson’s game isn’t much different this season than it was in 2018-19. He still is a strong, physical defender who kills penalties, blocks shots and tries to make the safe play. And the analytics still don’t flatter him as he has been on the ice for 863 shot attempts against, again a team-high.

But two things have changed. First, his mobility. This past offseason, Johnson reunited with Mike Barwis, a strength and conditioning coach who, in addition to operating training centers throughout the United States and Europe, works in similar capacities with the Detroit Red Wings and New York Mets.

Johnson previously worked with Barwis, but his well-documented financial woes — Johnson declared bankruptcy in 2014 after family members misappropriated his earnings while with the Columbus Blue Jackets — did not permit him to invest in Barwis’ service the past few offseasons.

“None of it is reinventing the wheel,” Johnson said. “But it’s all about speed, athleticism. We lift three times a week, then speed and agility Tuesdays and Thursdays. It’s the hardest training I’ve ever done. I know that. When the season starts, I know I’m ready. ”

Johnson didn’t just do squats and burpees. Hearing Barwis describe the process, it sounded more like a machine, not a human, was reassembled.

“We kind of just overhauled a lot of different things,” said Barwis, who worked with Johnson at his facility in Boca Raton, Fla. “Worked on his mobility a lot. Worked on balancing out his imbalances and correctives and making sure he was the most effective mover. And had the ideal symmetry in motion. And we really went after his strength and explosiveness. The goal was to regenerate the high levels of neuro-recruitment and activate those levels at high velocity to make Jack as explosive as possible in multiple directions.

“The program was designed with that in combination with an on-ice program that we do as well, doing on-ice speed, agility and skill work. They were kind of blended together in a way that the neurological system was adjusted to the same loads and specifications for velocity and activation throughout the phase to initiate as much explosiveness as possible in conjunction with balancing out his body and increasing his range of motion.

Johnson said: “I’m much more comfortable. Everything. New city, new house, new teammates, new coaches. Everything. I’m much more comfortable this year. I feel more comfortable in the room. I feel more comfortable on the ice. All those things.”

“He looks like he’s got a little bit more sense of comfort,” said forward Bryan Rust. “Confidence is key for a player. You can definitely see it in his game and the way he’s carrying himself.”

As a result, Johnson, a left-handed shot who was forced to play the right side quite a bit in 2018-19 because of right-handed defenseman Justin Schultz being sidelined four months with an injury, has seen a slight increase in ice time from 19:17 per game last season to 19:44 this season.

Even his relative Corsi for percentage has improved a tad from minus-5.6% to minus-4.2%.

No one is about to confuse Johnson with an All-Star such as Erik Karlsson, but he’s been better, even if just slightly, by most advanced measures.

His basic numbers are a bit better, too. In 55 games, he has 11 points (three goals, eight assists). Last season, he had 13 points (one goal, 12 assists) in 82 games.

(Video courtesy NHL)

“He’s more familiar with how we’re trying to play, the style of play that we play here,” coach Mike Sullivan said. “So with all that familiarity and clearer understanding of what his contribution is to helping us win games, I think that just helps a player. I just think Jack is more comfortable. As a result, he’s making better plays with the puck. He’s defending when we need him to. He’s trying to get involved in the offense when the opportunity presents itself.

“When you get that first year under your belt after (changing teams), sometimes that familiarity of coming back to training camp and having a clearer understanding of what’s expected of me I think can help a player. I think it’s helped Jack as well.

“He understands what the expectations are. He knows what his role is within the group that we have.”