Ashley Johnston

Ashley Johnston (born 17 July 1992) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey defender and current assistant coach of the National Women's Hockey League's Metropolitan Riveters. Known for her gritty, stay-at-home style of play as a shutdown defender, she was the first player to serve as team captain in Riveters history, a role she would hold for three years until her initial retirement.[1][2]

For other people with similar names, see Ashley Johnson.
Ashley Johnston
Johnston in 2011
Born (1992-07-17) July 17, 1992
Burlington, Ontario, Canada
Height 183 cm (6 ft 0 in)
Position Defenceman
Shot Left
Played for New York/Metropolitan Riveters (NWHL)
Union College
Burlington Barracudas
Playing career 2015–2020

Playing career

Early career

Johnston was born in 1992 in Burlington, Ontario, and is a graduate of Union College, where she played for the college women's hockey team.[3][4]

Professional career
Johnston with the Riveters in 2015

Johnston joined the New York Riveters for the National Women's Hockey League's (NWHL) inaugural season in 2015–16 as a defenseman. She was elected as the franchise's first captain.[5][6]

On 18 April 2016, Johnston signed a one-year contract worth $13,500 with the New York Riveters for the 2016–17 season,[7] although salaries throughout the league were later cut up to 50% during the season.[8] Johnston was selected for the 2017 All-Star Game as a media pick.[9] Johnston was awarded the Denna Laing Award by the NWHL for her performance in the 2016–17 season, as selected by the NWHL Players' Association.[10][11]

On 25 May 2017, Johnston re-signed with the New York Riveters for the 2017–18 season, continuing as captain.[12][13] In October 2017, the New York Riveters were renamed the Metropolitan Riveters as part of a deal with the New Jersey Devils of the National Hockey League as the team was playing in Newark, New Jersey.[14][15] The Riveters won the Isobel Cup that season, with Johnston earning her first career playoff point with an assist.

Following the 2017–18 season, Johnston announced her retirement from hockey.[16] She made a comeback to return to the team for the 2019–20 season, earning three points in ten games. In May 2020, she announced her retirement to join the Riveters' coaching staff as an assistant coach.[17] She had previously spent time as an assistant coach with the club while injured during the 2017–18 season.

Personal life

Outside of hockey, Johnston works as a mechanical engineer.[18][19][20]

Career statistics
    Regular Season   Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
2015–16New York RivetersNWHL 161678 20000
2016–17New York RivetersNWHL 172136 10000
2017–18Metropolitan RivetersNWHL 1411210 20110
2019–20Metropolitan RivetersNWHL 100332 10002
NWHL totals 574111526 60112

References
  1. Bryant, Casey (September 8, 2020). "All-Time Starting Lineup: Metropolitan Riveters". The Ice Garden.
  2. Murphy, Mike (February 27, 2018). "Ashley Johnston and the role of the shutdown defender". The Ice Garden.
  3. "Ashley Johnston at eliteprospects.com". www.eliteprospects.com.
  4. Crowley, Cathleen F. "Three local hockey players go pro in new women's league". Times Union. Retrieved 4 January 2017.
  5. Murphy, Mike (10 December 2015). "Interview With New York Riveters Captain Ashley "Stretch" Johnston". SB Nation. Retrieved 4 January 2017.
  6. Jackson, Yolanda L. (2 August 2017). "The Fight for Equal Pay". The Huffington Post. Retrieved 26 October 2017.
  7. NHWL.Co (18 April 2016). "Riveters Re-Sign Johnston and Dosdall". NHWL. Archived from the original on 2016-05-05. Retrieved 4 January 2017.
  8. "NWHL HIT WITH BAD NEWS". The Fourth Period. November 18, 2016. Archived from the original on 2016-11-19. Retrieved 2018-06-06.
  9. Linehan, Meg (6 January 2017). "Whale's Babstock, Riveters' Johnston added to NWHL All-Star Game". Excelle Sports. Archived from the original on 16 January 2017. Retrieved 15 January 2017.
  10. Nagel, Kevin (17 March 2017). "Burlington's Johnston among NWHL award winners". Inside Halton. Burlington Post. Retrieved 14 April 2017.
  11. Balf, Celia (14 March 2017). "NWHL Awards recognizes the top players this season". Excelle Sports. Archived from the original on 15 April 2017. Retrieved 14 April 2017.
  12. Murphy, Mike (25 May 2017). "The Riveters have re-signed captain Ashley Johnston". The Ice Garden. Retrieved 3 June 2017.
  13. NWHL.Zone (25 May 2017). "Riveters' Re-Sign Captain Ashley Johnston". NWHL. Retrieved 3 June 2017.
  14. Ingemi, Marisa (6 October 2017). "NHL partnership a step in the right direction for the NWHL". ESPN. Retrieved 26 October 2017.
  15. Schram, Carol (10 October 2017). "NWHL Partnership With NHL's New Jersey Devils Aims To Boost Profile Of Women's Hockey". Forbes. Retrieved 26 October 2017.
  16. "NWHL Icon Ashley "Stretch" Johnston Says Goodbye". OurSportsCentral.com. 6 June 2018.
  17. Murphy, Mike (May 20, 2020). "Ashley Johnston joins Riveters coaching staff, Ivo Mocek returning as head coach". The Ice Garden.
  18. Howard, Johnette (30 December 2016). "Hockey stars pushing for options outside Olympic window". ESPN. Retrieved 4 January 2017.
  19. Gibbs, Lindsay (9 October 2015). "These women are about to make hockey history". ThinkProgress. Retrieved 4 January 2017.
  20. Layton, Jeremy (20 February 2017). "A robotics engineer by day, a women's hockey star by night". The New York Post. Retrieved 14 April 2017.
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