Johnston is certainly doing that. The Stars (15-5-4) are second in the Central Division, five points behind the NHL-leading Colorado Avalanche.<\/p>\n
Selected by Dallas with the No. 23 pick in the 2021 NHL Draft, Johnston continues to improve in his fourth season with the Stars. He has been particularly good on the power play, with 15 points (nine goals, six assists) this season.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s a young player, very crafty, and is a very coachable young man,\u201d Stars coach Glen Gulutzan said. \u201cWhen you get the hockey IQ in those young players, it pops out at you. If you look at his skill set, he has a great shot, he doesn\u2019t need much space to shoot. He\u2019s not an overly fast player, he\u2019s not an overly big player, but he\u2019s a very, very effective player in the NHL and it just speaks to his hockey intelligence.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gulutzan said he would have Johnston on the Olympic team, but is not picking the squad, although Stars general manager Jim Nill is on the Canadian management team and will have a say.<\/p>\n
Gulutzan, who is in first year of his second stint as coach of the Stars, believes Johnston may not be getting the attention Bedard and Celebrini are around the League but is very much in the same category.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe does fly under the radar for me,\u201d Gulutzan said. \u201cI\u2019ve been very impressed with him as a young man and a player since I\u2019ve gotten here. His attention to detail and his work ethic, he\u2019s a really good young player and probably doesn\u2019t get enough attention.\u201d<\/p>\n
Johnston was among the 42 NHL players invited to Hockey Canada\u2019s National Teams Orientation Camp in Calgary Aug. 26-28, along with Bedard and Celebrini. All three were at first considered longshots to make the team.<\/p>\n
The longshots might be coming in.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think he is in that category, he\u2019s an elite young player and he\u2019s right up there with those two kids,\u201d Stars captain Jamie Benn<\/a> said. \u201cMaybe he\u2019s a little bit of a hidden gem down here playing for this team but we know how good he is and I think the whole League knows how good he is, and probably he just doesn\u2019t get talked about enough.\u201d<\/p>\n Johnston has improved offensively every season since entering the League in 2022-23. He had 71 points (33 goals, 38 assists) in 82 games last season and 10 points (four goals, six assists) in 18 Stanley Cup Playoff games. The previous season, Johnston had 65 points (32 goals, 33 assists) in 82 games and 16 points (10 goals, six assists) in 19 playoff games.<\/p>\n \u201cHe\u2019s a guy that can dominate a game by himself,\u201d Benn said. \u201cHe plays a 200-foot game and plays it well and you don\u2019t see that too often in young kids early on when they come into this League, and he has it and has had it since Day 1.\u201d<\/p>\n Johnston has 203 points (101 goals, 101 assists) in 270 games with Dallas. Among those to debut with Dallas, he became the third fastest player to 200 points in team history behind teammates Jason Robertson<\/a> (190 games) and Roope Hintz<\/a> (263), who could represent the United States and Finland, respectively, at the Olympics.<\/p>\n