Blackhawks’ Tyler Johnson on trade deadline: ‘It’s pretty hard to not completely think about it”.

 

 

As a rookie with Tampa Bay, Tyler Johnson recalls his first trade deadline experience. Although Ben Bishop, his teammate, played a practical joke on Johnson by calling him with Lightning general manager Steve Yzerman’s phone number via a third-party app, Johnson had no need to be nervous.

Johnson chuckled, “That was a pretty scary moment for myself.” “I was like, ‘Hey, Mr. Yzerman,’ as soon as you started talking to him, and then you started talking to him and I was like, ‘Ah, dammit, Bish!'” I became aware immediately. However, it is somewhat nerve-wracking.”

With Tampa Bay, Johnson never had to worry about in-season transactions aside from his rookie year because the Lightning were Stanley Cup candidates and playoff hopefuls. With these Blackhawks who are rebuilding, things are different.

“When I was in Tampa, we were pretty much buyers the whole time, so guys weren’t really too worried about everything,” said Johnson. “We focused more on how we could contribute, what we could accomplish, how we could come up with our own ideas, and that type of thing. Being sellers here for the past few years is definitely a little different. It’s difficult to see guys depart, especially if they’re family or friends, who you’ve been with for the entire year.There is no denying that being on both sides changes things. Everyone finds it difficult because of the great amount of uncertainty. Guys who don’t have a public persona can nonetheless be exchanged. It’s one of those things where you can never be sure.