There are no two players that are quite as synonymous with one another as Johnny Boychuk and Nick Leddy. The two were acquired the same day as one another and have played alongside each other on the New York Islanders blue line ever since.
So this season will be a bit of a new experience for Leddy, along with the rest of the Islanders’ defensive core.
“I know with myself we came in on the same day together and basically have been together every day since,” Nick Leddy said. “I’ll definitely miss him a lot. I’m glad he can stick around the team and help us out in any way he can.”
The departure of Johnny Boychuk will change a few things on the ice for the Islanders, but the impact goes well beyond that. For the Islanders, Boychuk was as much a leader and a personality off the ice as he was on it.
Boychuk announced he was ending his NHL career in November due to effects from an eye injury he suffered during the regular season. The was clearly an emotional one for the veteran defenseman and it brought to light just what his impact meant to the team.
As training camp opened this week on Long Island, the players still on the roster were more than happy to recount just what an asset Boychuk was during his time as an Islander.
“Those are shoes I don’t think anyone is going to fill,” Anders Lee said. “Johnny is a special person and a special guy in our locker room. Anytime you have a cornerstone like him move on a little bit you’re going to miss him no matter what. Those things happen, unfortunately.”
Fellow defenseman Ryan Pulock sadi that not having Boychuk was a real loss for the team.
“Just Johnny in the room, he’s such a calming influence especially for us on the back end,” Pulock said. “He was just so positive and that’s hard to do. It really helped us. It’s going to be a loss for the whole team on the ice and off the ice.”
Johnny Boychuk was credited for helping to change the perception of the Islanders around the league. After years of players refusing to play on Long Island or not re-signing, it was notable when Boychuk signed an extension with the Islanders.
Leddy was the first of those two to sign an extension and then Boychuk less than a month later. Not only did Boychuk change the perception, but he helped players grow, including Leddy who was only 23-years-old at the time.
“Helping me throughout the last six, seven years playing together,” Leddy said. “Learning so many different things from each other and I think he just helped the whole D core. Whether it’s positioning wise, whether on special teams. Just his whole presence was huge with him.”
