Expectations were pretty low for Johnny Boychuk heading into this year. He played just 58 games with the New York Islanders last season and at 34 years old there was a pretty good chance this was the new Boychuk.
On the ice, Barry Trotz didn’t ask him to do as much as the Islanders expected from him in the past. He usually could be penciled in for a solid 20 minutes per night, but this year was different, he was getting about two minutes less per game.
Since Boychuk turned 35 midway through the season, the Isles were likely wise to give him a smaller role.