By AMANDA HARRIS
JoeBoltsFan.com analyst
Since being named Bolts assistant coach Feb. 24, Jim Johnson has been an enigma of sorts.
His absence from the bench during games and relegation to the video room at Lightning practice sessions has even prompted many to wonder if head coach Rick Tocchet is making an effort NOT to integrate the former NHL defenseman into his coaching staff.
And though I can’t speak to the latter, I can (at your behest) shed a little light on who Johnson the coach is, via an interview I had the pleasure to conduct with him last month.
To begin, I must thank the Lightning for permitting me to share this with you, as my speaking with Johnson was initially prompted by a story I wrote for the team to highlight the fact both the Bolts and the Admirals were poised for the post-season for the first time in the history of their affiliation.
It should be noted the interview occurred in early February, when Johnson was Norfolk’s new head coach just 10 games into what would become an eventual 17-game impressive run (13-2-2). Johnson had taken over the job Jan. 16, shortly after the AHL’s all-star break.
Entirely accommodating, thorough, and thoughtful, Johnson shared everything, from his take on the Admirals’ turnaround and the coaching philosophy he’s come to adopt to his bona fide passion for the game of hockey itself.
Of course, I have much to say about the current situation in which our Lightning finds itself and I’ll weight in later. For now, however, I invite you to get to know Coach Johnson.
Amanda Harris: You’ve had a phenomenal run in your first 10 games as head coach (undefeated in the first 9 with a 7-1-2 record) and in just over three short weeks you’ve taken a team with one of the worst records in the AHL from seventh place to third. What’s even more amazing is the fact you managed to swing this transformation with the team in the midst of a seven-game road trip.
To what do you attribute this turnaround and the Admirals newfound success?
Jim Johnson: The first thing that we needed to do was create a team identity and that begins with the team. The best team in sport today is a team that feels like a family. Organizations need to go above and beyond to make the players feel appreciated and an integral part of the team and I believe that this starts with the respect of each other in the room. We also needed to be accountable to each other and pay attention to the details of our system play.
This team had given great effort with a quality core group of leaders in the room and as the head coach I needed to meet with each individual player before we started with evaluations on what I witnessed the first part of the year. I think honesty is the backbone for the winning culture in any level of sport. The only way you make progress is by having the courage to make an honest assessment of a given situation. This approach allows for an opportunity to find solutions to problems or challenges that present themselves.
I am a guy who is not afraid to make a candid assessment of a given situation. I hope my personality will compliment this organization in such a way that it allows us to get the most out of the players. I hope I can challenge all with new ideas and together we can help the Norfolk Admirals get to the post-season to give these players the experience of playing in [that kind of] situation.
Finally, we as a staff looked at what we needed to do to create more offensive production and we came up with a detailed plan we laid out to the players:
1. Better puck placement in the offensive zone where we have a better than 50% chance of regaining control of the puck back
2. Better puck support with skating speed
3. More shots to the net and on the net
4. Back pressure on the puck with great back checking commitment so that we could start to generate more chance off our transition game with more energy
6. Rush double drives to the net
We also needed to change our fore checking philosophies and terminology and see who the players were that were willing to get in the eyes of the goaltenders.
Harris: How does your background as a former NHL defenseman, development coach, and fixture in U.S. and amateur hockey factor into your coaching style?
Johnson: I have enjoyed every step of the way from coaching with the Phoenix Coyotes to coaching in international competition with the U.S.A. Junior Team and the elite players across the country. I have learned every day developing players and I believe that I am a better coach today because of these experiences. I look forward to coaching because I know that I will be challenged every day to be a better coach.
I had the opportunity to play for some of the best coaches in the game and I learned from each of them. I love the opportunity to get up in the morning and make a contribution to something special. When you have a great organization and a great team with a real chance to win, that’s what I look forward to every day.
I am also looking forward to working on a daily basis with good people that have the same passion, enthusiasm, and goals that I do. To me, speed is the most intimidating factor in hockey. Individual speed, team speed, transition speed, intellectual speed, they all add up to how fast the game is played. Good puck movement is good team speed. If you can do things fast it forces opposing teams to be on their toes or heels depending on how they respond!
Harris: You’re very good at taking a long-range goal and working towards it through a series of smaller successes, much like the three-game blocks and best-of series you seem to favor. Aside from giving you the ability to effectively evaluate each player in a pressure situation, what other benefits does this tactic present?
Johnson: It’s a great way of not focusing on how many points out of the playoffs we may or may not be or the amount of games remaining in the season. It makes the upcoming games the most important and allows the players to focus and set their sites on smaller segments with achievable goals. It also gives the players time for self-assessments regarding their growth and development in playing in these different situations!
Harris: With roughly 28 games remaining, the Admirals sit third in the East, just seven points out of second place in what is arguably one of toughest divisions in the AHL. How do you plan to lead your team to the post-season?
Johnson: We need to focus on our team identity and concentrate on doing what we do best and get better each and every day. We have to win the majority of the playoff series that are in place.
A strategic plan that inspires people to become better men is what leads to the type of competitive greatness that the winning teams achieve consistently. Ultimately it is this inspiration, imbedding in each member of an organization, that leads to the constant and never-ending improvement that will lead to consistent playoff performance and success as a team and individually.
Harris: The Lightning has made it no secret that it wants to restore organizational depth to the franchise, strengthen its prospect base, and grow younger. Your thoughts on how cultivating a competitive and winning culture in Norfolk can assist the Lightning in achieving such goals.
Johnson: You manage this through the draft and development of these players in an environment that balances development and winning for the success of the players. We are starting to see the quality of individuals in the organization to the degree where we can strengthen the base of players. Our young players have great work habits and the type of character that it takes to be successful.
I think you have to have a great nucleus to be a legitimate contender. Having said that, it is difficult to win and a lot of work and preparation has to take place in order for any team to be successful. Potential is a word that is used in sports often, but does not mean a whole lot unless the necessary commitment and sacrifices are made to turn that “potential” into something special. This is what Norfolk can do to help these young men achieve their goals of playing in the NHL.
In order to be successful, players must believe the team has a plan to be successful and that plan should be communicated to the players so they will embrace it.
1. Acquire the right assets
2. Manage those assets well
3. Develop those assets with a strategic framework that maximizes the possibility of a team being successful
Harris: Favorite thing about your new head coaching gig in Norfolk thus far?
Johnson: I have really enjoyed getting the players to buy into the team identity and concepts. I also believe that in a successful game plan a team has purpose. There must be calculated risk to the decisions that are made within the framework of the game plan. …The biggest key to a winning approach is the “buy-in” factor. If the players “buy-in” to the approach or the game plan, the chances of success are greatly increased. That is one of the biggest challenges of a coaching staff.
By AMANDA HARRIS
