By all accounts, Johnathan Kovacevic has settled into his rookie year without a hitch. Arguably one of the most underrated players on the Montreal Canadiens, it's clear the 25-year-old defenseman has found his feet in the NHL -'and it's a long time coming.
“I guess everyone has their own journey, and I had to keep that in mind the whole time I was on mine,” Kovacevic told me recently in Montreal. “There are people my age who have been playing in the NHL for years now, and I've taken a longer path to get here. Honestly, I wouldn't have it any other way, just because it's taught me so much along the journey. Every stage of hockey that I moved up, there was something I had to learn in life in order to be successful, so it's kind of funny how hockey and life have mirrored each other in a sense.”
Through 46 games in 2022-23, Kovacevic has recorded one goal, five assists, six points, and 51 shots. He's firmly established himself as a stable and reliable presence on the ice, solidifying the right side of the defensive group with his adaptability and ability to learn quickly.
“We both played college hockey, so I knew [Kovacevic] a bit from there,” said defenseman Jordan Harris, a fellow rookie on the Canadiens. “He's been unreal all season – super steady and smart. I feel like a lot of his game goes underrated and is not talked about enough. He's been really solid all year.”
1er but du match et 1er but dans la LNH pour Johnathan Kovacevic!
First goal of the game and first NHL goal for Kovy!#GoHabsGo pic.twitter.com/T0xEcWKgc6
— Canadiens Montreal (@CanadiensMTL) December 7, 2022
Grinding in the Minors
There's no easy way to get to the NHL, but Kovacevic definitely took the scenic route.
After being cut from his AAA team in Southern Ontario, the defenseman was a 12th-round selection in the OHL Draft. Kovacevic ground his way through training camp twice before being cut from the OHL Niagara IceDogs – twice. He then turned to Tier II Junior A hockey to stay in the game, where he made enough waves to move up to NCAA Division I.
Kovacevic played three seasons of Division I hockey at Merrimack College, a small school in Massachusetts that competes in the Hockey East, while he completed a civil engineering degree and was passed over in the NHL Draft twice. It wasn't until his third year of eligibility that the Winnipeg Jets finally drafted him in 2017, and still, the battle wasn't over.
“It's easy for me to stay focused because it's what I love to do,” Kovacevic reflected on his journey. “I honestly love it so much that no matter what, that's all I'm thinking about. It'll be the middle of July, and I'll go to bed thinking about hockey. I'll go to bed thinking about what I can work on and how I can get a leg up. It's just something that I've loved my whole life, which makes it easy.”
Kovacevic signed a two-year, entry-level deal with the Jets in March 2019 and was assigned to the team's AHL affiliate, the Manitoba Moose, at the start of the 2019-20 season – and that's where he stayed for nearly three full seasons.'
He didn't make his NHL debut until Jan. 28, 2022, recording one shot on goal in 10:21 of ice time against the Vancouver Canucks. Kovacevic's debut made him just the 14th player in Merrimack College history to reach the NHL. Collin Delia (Vancouver Canucks) and Jim Hrivnak (Chicago Blackhawks) are the only other active alumni.
Now, you'd be forgiven for thinking the 6-foot-5 defenseman had finally found his happily-ever-after, but alas, not quite yet.'