Jack Johnson signs a one year deal.

There were probably not a great many teams in the National Hockey League that had their eyes on Jack Johnson in the offseason. The veteran defenseman has not had himself some particularly strong seasons as of late but in spite of that he has once again managed to secure himself an NHL contract.

On Sunday NHL insider Elliotte Friedman reported that Johnson had come to terms on a one year deal with the Colorado Avalanche. That deal will pay Johnson the league minimum salary of $750,000 for this upcoming season, making it a relatively low risk proposition for the Avalanche. 

In spite of the fact that this is a relatively low risk contract for the Avs, the reaction to the news has been mixed to say the least. That comes as a result of Johnson's recent struggles as a member of both the New York Rangers and the Pittsburgh Penguins. Most recently he signed a one year deal with the Rangers at a cap hit of $1.15 million, but the Rangers only got 13 games out of him with Johnson recording 1 goal, no assists and finishing his tenure with the Rangers with a plus minus rating of -5.

Prior to that Johnson was signed to an incredibly ill advised contract (5 years at an average annual value of $3.25 million) by former Penguins general manager Jim Rutherford, a deal that ended in a buyout after just two seasons in Pittsburgh. Thanks to their former management and Johnson's contract, the Penguins will be on the hook for that buyout until the 2025 - 2026 NHL regular season where Johnson will count for $916,667 of their available cap space.

That being said there is no question that the Avalanche and their general manager in former NHL star Joe Sakic know exactly what they are getting out of Johnson here. The veteran defenseman has earned this contract after a successful professional tryout offer with the Avalanche during the preseason, one that they deemed was good enough to earn him the one year deal.

Unlike in Pittsburgh and in New York the Avalanche will be using Johnson at the bottom of their defensive rotation, a role he is much more suited for at this stage of his career.