Two weeks ago, three-time Olympic gold medalist Rebecca Johnston announced her retirement from Canada’s National Women’s team.
“After more than 15 years with Hockey Canada, it’s hard to put into words what this game and this journey have meant to me,” Johnston said via media release.
“From the first time I wore the Maple Leaf, I felt an overwhelming sense of pride and responsibility to represent my country, and that feeling never faded. My ultimate dream was to play on the Olympic stage and to bring home medals for Canada, achievements that will always stand as the greatest honours of my career,” said Johnston, who has worked as a player development and grassroots hockey coordinator with the Calgary Flames since 2022.
The retirement of the player affectionately nicknamed “Johnny” makes the 36-year-old Sudbury, Ont. native eligible for induction into the Hockey Hall of Fame in three years.
Let’s review whether she is indeed worthy of the honour.
Johnston to the HHOF? The Pros
Johnston had an outstanding career representing her country, earning three World Championships (2007, 2012, 2021) to complement her three finishes atop the Olympic podium (2010, 2014, 2022). She retires among the top ten all-time in numerous categories: games played (182 – seventh), goals (63 – ninth), assists (79 – eighth) and points (142 – eighth) with Team Canada.
The latter category certainly qualifies her for serious induction consideration. Of the seven players ahead of Johnston on Canada’s all-time scoring list, five are already Hall of Famers (Hayley Wickenheiser, Jayna Hefford, Caroline Ouellette, Danielle Goyette and Jennifer Botterill – one of this year’s inductees) and one, Marie-Philip Poulin, is still an active player. (Not only will Poulin most certainly get the nod on her first ballot of eligibility, very few would complain if she gets a wing in the museum named after her.)
In addition, Johnston’s career in the Canadian Women’s Hockey League, one of the predecessors to the PWHL, was nothing short of stellar. The former league unexpectedly closed shop at the conclusion of the 2019 season, Johnston playing in its final game as she and her victorious Calgary Inferno skated off with the Clarkson Cup. It was Johnston’s second championship in that league, having accomplished the feat three years earlier.
The player’s career total of 129 points (51 goals, 87 assists in just 99 regular season games played) place her in ninth-place on the CWHL leaderboard. She won the Angela James Bowl in 2014-15 as the league’s top scorer while also taking home MVP honours that season.
On the collegiate level, Johnston starred at Cornell University, three times earning a nod as either First or Second Team All-American, while also being named a finalist for the Patty Kazmaier Award on three occasions.
Johnston to the HHOF? The cons
The only factor that might work against Johnston’s induction is the player’s relative lack of visibility. When Canada was consistently winning Olympic gold, Johnston was never the best player on the team. The spotlight shone on contemporaries like Wickenheiser, Hefford, Poulin and yes – even the Sochi goal post – in 2014.
While Johnston was tearing up the CWHL during her six seasons with the league, the players – then not being paid to play professionally – were skating in relative anonymity compared to the plethora of viewers who watch the PWHL today on television and on YouTube.
Overall assessment: She belongs
Even casual women’s hockey fans who watch the sport only during the quadrennial Olympics know Johnston’s name. She earned four medals at the Winter Games – three gold and one silver – in a span of a dozen years. The longevity alone, to be among the best players in her country, for that length of time, epitomizes her excellence. She compiled 26 points in 22 career Olympic contests.
Yes, a championship is more of a team, as opposed to an individual, accomplishment when assessing resume credentials (no, Stanley Cup winner Gary Leeman wasn’t a better hockey player than Marcel Dionne). Johnston was hardly a passenger; she made her teams better.
The unofficial election desk has made its call: Rebecca Johnston gets fitted for one of the two Hockey Hall of Fame blazers available to women in 2028.
