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Ivan Wilfred (Ching) Johnson

NHL, the National Hockey League is a premier professional North American Sports League played in indoor stadiums. It’s divided into two conferences, each comprising of three divisions of ice hockey teams.

Ivan Wilfred Johnson is a Hall of Famer in the NHL, who was born on 7th December, 1898 in Winnipeg, Manitoba and died on 16th June, 1979. He played in 12 NHL seasons from 1926 to 1938. He was a precious team leader and fan favorite all through his 12 year NHL career. During his playing days, Johnson was thought out to be one of the hardest bodycheckers to play the game. As a teen, Ivan relocated to Eveleth, Minnesota, where he spent three years on the blue line of the city's team in the United States Amateur Hockey Association. In 1923 Johnson moved on to the semiprofessional Minneapolis Millers, where he was matched on defense with Clarence, Taffy Abel. New York Rangers manager, Conn Smythe bought the services of both rearguards for the team's NHL debut in 1926 and 1927.

Ivan’s and Abel's blanket defensive coverage was mainly obvious during the 1928 finals next to the Montreal Maroons, a low scoring series in which the teams united to score 11 goals in five games. Ivan Johnson was chosen to the NHL First All-Star Team in 1932 and 1933 and he made the Second Team in 1931 and 1934. On February 14, 1934, Johnson took part in the milestone, Ace Bailey Benefit Game to assist the former Maple Leaf star whose career was finished in advance by a brutal Eddie Shore hit. When the Rangers freed Johnson after the 1936 and 1937 season, the New York Americans jumped at the possibility to offer him a contract. Amerks manager Red Dutton did not share the Rangers view that the expert was too old and slow to be effective.

Ivan skated for two years with the Minneapolis Millers of the American Hockey Association became the coach for two years. His last season in pro hockey was as coach of the Washington Lions of the Eastern Amateur League in 1940 and 1941. It was his ability and determined which set the competitor above his peers and earned a spot in the Hockey Hall of Fame.

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