Adam Johnson, known for his 13 NHL appearances with the Pittsburgh Penguins, died on Saturday after a “freak accident” during a game in England. He was 29. He was playing for the Nottingham Panthers in a Challenge Cup match. “The Nottingham Panthers are truly devastated to announce that Adam Johnson has tragically passed away following a freak accident at the game in Sheffield last night,” the team said Sunday morning.
Five lesser-known facts about Adam Johnson, the NHL player
- Johnson’s career carried him through a variety of leagues. He appeared in 13 NHL games with the Pittsburgh Penguins in 2018–19 and 2019–20 before heading to Sweden to play for the Malmo Redhawks in 2020–21.
- Johnson captained Minnesota-Duluth’s college hockey team to two NCAA tournaments. In 2017, his overtime win over Boston University earned Minnesota-Duluth a spot in the Frozen Four.
- Adam Johnson wasn’t limited to one league. He also made stops in the American Hockey League and even ventured to Germany to play for the Augsburg Panthers in 2022–23. His next destination was Nottingham for the 2023–24 season.
- Adam Johnson was born in 1994 in Hibbing, a city in Minnesota, US.
- Following Adam Johnson’s terrible death, the UK Elite League announced that three games scheduled for Sunday in Belfast, Fife, and Guildford have been rescheduled.