Craig Johnson (ice hockey, born 1972)

Craig Thomas Johnson (born March 18, 1972), is an American former professional ice hockey player who played ten seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL). He was drafted 33rd overall by the St. Louis Blues in the 1990 NHL Entry Draft and went on to play 563 games in the NHL. He is best remembered as being the key player the Los Angeles Kings received from the St. Louis Blues in the Wayne Gretzky trade of 1996.

Craig Johnson
Born	(1972-03-18) March 18, 1972 Saint Paul, Minnesota, U.S.
Height	6 ft 3 in (191 cm)
Weight	198 lb (90 kg; 14 st 2 lb)
Position	Left Wing
Shot	Left
Played for	St. Louis Blues Los Angeles Kings Toronto Maple Leafs Washington Capitals Mighty Ducks of Anaheim Hamburg Freezers DEG Metro Stars EC Red Bull Salzburg
National team	United States
NHL Draft	33rd overall, 1990 St. Louis Blues
Playing career	1994–2008

Johnson made his NHL debut during the 1994–95 season with St. Louis. He scored the first goal at the Kiel Center when it opened in 1995. On February 27, 1996, Johnson was traded with Patrice Tardif, Roman Vopat and two draft picks to the Los Angeles Kings for Wayne Gretzky. He remained a King for another seven seasons until 2003 where he played for three teams during the 2003–04 season, the Toronto Maple Leafs, Washington Capitals and the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim.

Johnson moved to Germany's Deutsche Eishockey Liga, signing with the Hamburg Freezers. After one season he signed with the DEG Metro Stars in Düsseldorf where he spent two seasons. In 2007, Johnson moved to Austria and signed with Red Bull Salzberg.

Johnson returned to the Orange County area and coaches youth hockey for Santa Margarita Catholic High School hockey and Anaheim Jr Ducks youth.[1]

His son Ryan a defenseman, was drafted in the 1st round by the Buffalo Sabres in the 2019 NHL Draft