While the lockout leaves a lot of prime-age NHL players in a holding pattern, there’s also a subset of fringe guys who wonder if they’ll ever play at the highest level again.
The Pittsburgh Penguins allowed former backup goalie Brent Johnson to walk, prompting him to tell CSNWashington.com that he’s worried that his career might be in jeopardy.
“I’m up in the air,” Johnson said. “We’ll see what happens if and when everything starts up.
Yeah, I’m concerned, but at my age you start looking at the future and what you’re going to do next. Lockout or not, I still would have been in the same spot.”
The 35-year-old netminder seemed to lose the Penguins’ confidence in his third and final campaign with the team.
After two straight seasons with 23 games played, he appeared in just 16 last season. The Penguins only used him in relief once during the playoffs even though Marc-Andre Fleury allowed a staggering 26 goals in six contests.
Still, there’s a chance another team might give him a gander if they need a cheap backup. He’s only one year removed from posting an impressive .922 save percentage and his career numbers are respectable.
In the mean time, Johnson is taking up an offer to practice with former Washington Capitals teammates such as Brooks Laich. Read more about how that happened here.