Brahmas sign defenseman Craig Johnson, make final roster decisions
Published on October 17, 2002 under Central Hockey League (CHL)
Fort Worth Brahmas News Release
Fort Worth- Seven players were released and one was signed late Wednesday night as the Ft. Worth Brahmas settled on their final eighteen players that will suit up for the team's season opener tomorrow night at the Kansas Coliseum against the Wichita Thunder.
Veteran defenseman Craig Johnson, the Brahmas team captain last season, was signed to a contract on Wednesday evening. At 6'4", 235, Johnson will add some necessary size and toughness to the Brahmas defensive corps. He also will bring a vast amount of experience to a youthful Ft. Worth roster, as the 2002-03 season will be his eleventh professional season.
The Montreal, Quebec native skated in 45 games for the Brahmas in the 2001-02 campaign, picking up 10 points (5G/5A) and 147 penalty minutes. For his career, he has 510 regular season games played, 70 goals, 81 assists, and 2,091 penalty minutes. The 1,631 penalty minutes that he has to his credit in the CHL place him second all time in the league in that category. Only Doug Lawrence, with 2,109 minutes, has spent more time in the penalty box in CHL history than Johnson.
Johnson's best offensive season came in 1998-99 with the Austin Ice Bats (WPHL), when he totaled 16 goals and 9 assists in 43 games played.
He is a player that Brahmas head coach Todd Lalonde is very familiar with, as he has played for the Brahmas bench boss for the last three seasons. In 1999-2000, he was the captain of the Lalonde-led Central Texas Stampede (WPHL) squad that set league records for wins (50) and points (103) in a season. He was back with Lalonde as captain and player assistant coach for the Stampede in 2000-2001. When Central Texas suspended operations in January of 2001, Johnson came with Lalonde to Ft. Worth when Lalonde accepted the Brahmas coaching job.
Lalonde said on Thursday morning that Johnson brings several "necessary" attributes to his roster.
"The biggest thing that Craig has is experience. He is a veteran player that knows how to win and understands what it takes to contribute to a winning team. I thought as training camp went along that the one thing we were lacking was a little bit of leadership, and I expect Craig to step in and fill that void. It also helps that Craig has played for me for the last three years. He knows what I'm all about, knows my system, and knows how to communicate that to the younger players," said Lalonde.
After signing Johnson to a contract, the Brahmas placed seven players on waivers to trim their roster to the CHL mandated 18 player limit. Placed on waivers late Wednesday night were center Chad Grills, goaltenders Cameron MacDonald and Martin Fillion, and defensemen David Bourque, Mike McKinnon, Justin Seaborg, and Jeff Washbrook.
Lalonde admitted that deciding on his roster cuts was not easy.
"All of the players that were waived really came in and competed hard. It's difficult for me to let some of these guys go, and I'm sure they'll probably end up playing on another team. That being said, I'm confident that the 18 players that we'll open the season with tomorrow night give us a good chance of winning," said Lalonde.
Ft. Worth will open the season with four veteran players (260 or more regular season pro games played)âcenter Joe Van Volsen, right wing Kyle Reeves, left wing Chad Michalchuk, and the aforementioned Craig Johnson. Seven rookies are on the Brahmas rosterâdefensemen Darren Curry, Brant Somerville and Lee Jacobson, forwards Jim Midgley, Justin Williams, and Ryan Rivard, and goaltender Corey Batten. Six playersâJohnson, defensemen Adam Davis and Mike Tilson, and forwards Joe Van Volsen, Cody Leibel, and Chad Woollardâare returnees from the 2001-2002 Brahmas squad.
Center Joe Van Volsen, who led the Brahmas in scoring last year with 70 points (23G/47A), will be the Brahmas 2002-2003 team captain. Alternate captains will be left wing Chad Michalchuk, center Jason Reesor, and defenseman Mike Tilson. Van Volsen and Michalchuk will be the Brahmas player assistant coaches this season.
The Brahmas will open their 2002-2003 CHL season with a two game road trip this weekend. Ft. Worth will depart to Wichita this afternoon for tomorrow night's 7:30 p.m. game against the Thunder. Saturday night, Oct. 19, the Brahmas will travel to Bossier City, Lousiana for a Northeast Division game against the Bossier-Shreveport Mudbugs. Ft. Worth's home opener will not be until, Sat., Nov. 2 at 7:35 p.m. at the FWCC against the Indianapolis Ice.
IN OTHER NEWS:
The Brahmas game Saturday night at Bossier-Shreveport will be broadcast live on KTFW 92.1 FM. The pregame show will begin at 6:45 p.m. Jeff Bowerman, the Brahmas Director of Public and Media Relations, will handle the play-by-play duties for the game. The Brahmas are currently finalizing their broadcast schedule for this season and will release their full broadcast schedule next week. Saturday night's broadcast against Bossier-Shreveport will not be webcast, but plans are being made to have all of the following broadcasts carried on the internet.
Central Hockey League Stories from October 17, 2002
- Darren Pang Joins Ice as Goaltending Coach - Indianapolis Ice
- Buzzards to Open Lucky Seventh Season on Road - El Paso Buzzards
- Cosmo Dupaul Traded to Corpus Christi - Lubbock Cotton Kings
- Brahmas sign defenseman Craig Johnson, make final roster decisions - Fort Worth Brahmas
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