Man of the Week — Lars Johansson
KHL.ru’s weekly column ‘Man of the Week’ goes on with Lars Johansson, who is having a heroic effort as the Red Army continues its march towards the Gagarin Cup finals.
With CSKA being just one game away from yet another Gagarin Cup qualification, it’s time to celebrate its goalie’s efforts. For the first time, SKA managed to score on Lars Johansson in the playoffs, but there was little time to celebrate as CSKA quickly got the upper hand with the goalie posting 25 saves in the 5-2 Red Army triumph. But it wasn’t just a game: against SKA, Johansson posted a shutout streak of 181 minutes and 18 seconds before allowing a goal to Evgeny Timkin in game-3’s first period. It was the tenth-ever streak in the KHL history. However, SKA had little to celebrate, as the Red Army rallied back in the second period with two helpers by John Gilmour to go ahead and win the third match in a row. Tomorrow, CSKA may be the first team to qualify for the 2021 Gagarin Cup finals. And Lars Johansson had a massive role in this success.
Lars Johansson was born on July 11, 1987, in Avesta, a town in middle Sweden known for being a former copper and iron site as it was depicted in the historical coat of arms of the place. Today, the area is more known for its opportunities in the outdoor and sports world, and it’s not a case that both Johansson brothers ended up being professional athletes. Lars made a career as a hockey goaltender, while Martin — older by three years — is a Swedish orienteering, ski-orienteering, and cross-country skiing competitor, a medallist at the World Championship level.
After leaving Avesta and joining Mora in 2004, Johansson had his pro hockey debut in 2007, playing ten games in the then-called Elitserien. However, Mora’s tenure in the top-flight Swedish league was a short one, and the club returned to the Allsvenskan one year later, and Johansson stayed with the team until 2011. In the 2011 offseason, the goalie left Mora and joined the Allsvenskan side VIK Vasteras, with whom he spent the next two seasons, topping the league in saves percentage (93.7%) and goals-against average (1.88).
After his Allsvenskan accolades, Johansson joined Frolunda HC, one of the top teams in Sweden’s SHL. The 2015-2016 season was a historical one for the netminder, who backstopped Frolunda to SHL and Champions League’s triumphs, topping the league in all the main goaltending stats and being awarded Best goalie honors. Having outgrown his domestic league, Johansson was signed by the Chicago Blackhawks in 2016. However, he will spend the whole 2016-2017 campaign in the AHL, with the Rockford Icehogs, where he played 39 regular-season games. After one year in North America, Johansson crossed the Ocean back and signed with CSKA of the KHL.
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