Jim Johnson
Founding Member

Jim Johnson is a graduate of the University of Minnesota Duluth, a defenseman from 1981-85. Johnson was named Rookie of the Year in 1981 and he holds the record for most games played at UMD and in all of college hockey, playing in 174 games, scoring 13 goals and 90 assists for 103 points. He was also named to the Western Collegiate Hockey Association All Academic Team. While at UMD he led the Bulldogs to the WCHA Championship his last three years and had three NCAA appearances including two trips to the NCAA Final Four in 1984 and 1985 and was the Captain in 1985.

Following his college career, Johnson played 13 years in the National Hockey League, from 1985-98. Johnson appeared in 829 NHL Regular Season games and 51 Playoff Games, scoring 29 goals, 166 assists for a total of 195 points. Johnson signed as a free agent with the Pittsburgh Penguins in 1985 and went on to play in all 80 games his first two seasons. His rookie season he scored 29 points and posted a +16 rating and was named "Rookie of the Year" for the Pittsburgh Penguins organization. During his career he was a defenseman with the Pittsburgh Penguins, Minnesota North Stars, Dallas Stars, Washington Capitals and Phoenix Coyotes. The 1990-91 season proved to be a career highlight when the Minnesota North Stars won the Clarence Campbell Trophy before advancing to the 1991 Stanley Cup Finals against the Pittsburgh Penguins. Additionally, Jim was Team Player Representative for the National Hockey League Players Association from 1986-1991. Following his playing career Jim spent 4 years involved with the Phoenix Coyotes organization as a Consultant to the Hockey Operations under the General Manager, Broadcast Analyst and Assistant Coach.

Johnson has been involved with International Ice Hockey as both a player and a coach. His international playing experience includes representing the United States on six National Teams. He played at the International Ice Hockey Federation World Championships on four separate occasions; 1985, 1986, 1987 and in 1990 Jim captained the U.S. Team, scoring 5 points in 10 games at the IIHF World Championships in Bern, Switzerland. Johnson also represented the United States at the Canada Cup in 1991, winning a Silver Medal and played in the USA/USHL All Star Team in Switzerland, 1981. For three consecutive years Jim was an Assistant Coach for the United States National Junior Team at the International Ice Hockey World Jr. Championships; representing the U.S. in the Czech Republic, 2002; Russia, 2001 and Sweden 2000.

Since 1985 Jim has served in a variety of coaching capacities for USA Hockey on several occasions. In 2005 Jim was the Head Coach at the USA Hockey Select 16 Festival in Rochester, NY. Jim continues to be involved with USA Hockey Development Programs at the National, Regional and State levels, as a Coach, Evaluator and Presenter. In 2005 he was a Presenter at the USA Hockey Masters Coaching Symposium. Currently Jim is the Director of Player Development for the State of Arizona Amateur Hockey Association and is a Coach/Consultant for the USA Hockey Rocky Mountain District Camp. Jim was named USA Hockey Volunteer 2005 Coach of the Year and was a finalist for the 2006 USOC Volunteer Coach of the Year.

Jim is the Founder/Director of the nationally ranked PF Chang’s Hockey Program and Head Coach of the U18 Tier I team.