Centre Andreas Johansson was an experienced domestic and international player for Sweden by the time he reached the NHL in the mid-1990s. He was a fine skater with good size who was capable of staying with his man and winning battles for the puck.
Born in Hofors, Sweden, Johansson started making a name for himself with the second division Falun club in 1990-91. Most North American scouts were already aware of his talent and the New York Islanders chose him 136th overall in the 1991 NHL Entry Draft.
He was soon signed by the well-known Farjestad team where he remained for four seasons. Johannson helped the Swedes win consecutive silver medals at the 1992 and 1993 World Junior Championships. He graduated to the senior national team and scored nine points in eight games to lead all rivals when Sweden won silver at the 1995 World Championships. Following the season Johansson was named to his country's World all-star team.
Johannson debuted in the NHL with a three game stint for the Islanders in 1995-96. A few months later he played two games for Sweden at the inaugural World Cup of hockey. In November 1996 he was traded to the Pittsburgh Penguins along with Darius Kasparaitis for forward Bryan Smolinski. After starting the year on a line with Jaromir Jagr and Ron Francis, he broke two ribs early in the season. When Johannson returned he settled into a checking role on the fast-skating Pens and played three games for Sweden at the 1998 Nagano Olympics.
Johansson joined Ottawa at training camp in 1998 on a tryout with no guarantees and made the team. He found the club's disciplined but fast-skating system to be an excellent fit. He recorded his first 20-goal season but was traded to Tampa Bay after the playoffs for checking forward Rob Zamuner. Early in the 1999-00 season he was traded to Calgary and was playing well before suffering a career-threatening back injury in January. After a brief stint in Calgary, Johansson played in the Swiss National League in 2000-01 before returning to the NHL the following year. Upon his return to the NHL, Johansson suited up for the New York Rangers before joining the Nashville Predators for the 2002-03 season.
On the international scene, Johansson captured a silver medal with Sweden at the 2004 World Championships in Prague, Czech Republic.
