SAINT PAUL, Minn. – Minnesota Wild General Manager Bill Guerin today announced the National Hockey League (NHL) club has signed defenseman Simon Johansson to a two-year, entry-level contract starting with the 2022-23 season.
Johansson, 22 (6/14/99), recorded 32 points (8-24=32) including two power-play goals, a plus-6 rating, 177 shots on goal and 20 penalty minutes (PIM) in 58 games with Ilves Tampere in his first season in Finland’s Elite League. The 6-foot-2, 189-pound native of Stockholm, Sweden, became the youngest defensemen in Ilves history to score 32 points in a season. He ranked fourth on the team in assists and shots on goal and sixth in scoring. Johansson ranked T-6th among League defensemen in assists and T-8th in scoring. He collected six points (1-5=6) and 48 shots on goal in 10 playoff games, ranking T-2nd on the team in assists, third in shots on goal and T-3rd in scoring. Johansson ranked T-2nd among League defensemen in assists, third in shots on goal and T-3rd in playoff scoring.
He spent the previous four seasons playing in Sweden (2017=21). Johansson tallied 12 points (3-9=12) in 79 games in parts of three seasons with Djurgardens IF in Sweden’s Elite League (2017-18, 2019-21). He was selected by Minnesota in the fifth round (148th overall) of the 2018 NHL Draft.
