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Schools

Whiz Kid: Mike Johnson

Swampscott teen Mike Johnson doesn't sleep with his skates on, but he's on the ice quite a bit, playing winger for three local hockey teams and taking care of his Boston Terriers, Fade and Levi.

 

Swampscott seventh grader Mike Johnson’s favorite classes at the Swampscott Middle School are gym and math, but the place he wants to be is on the ice, playing hockey.

Johnson just started hockey tryouts for the middle school ice hockey team this week.

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Mike plays for the Lynn Comets and the St. Mary’s Chiefs, as well as looking for a spot on coach Gino Cresta’s middle school club.

“I like hockey, I’ve always liked hockey, I play baseball and soccer too, but hockey is my favorite,” Mike said from his home on Magnolia Road earlier this week.

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Johnson lives with his dad Mike, his mom Anne and his younger brother Danny, who also suits up for three sports in town athletic leagues.

Dan plays baseball, soccer and hockey, on the diamond the Johnson brothers switch between outfield and catcher, this past summer they suited up for the Yankees, in Al Duratti’s final season with the program.

“Mr. Duratti was very nice, he worked a lot with the pitchers and the catchers, he really was fun to play for, I had him for All-Stars too,” Johnson said.

Mike made the 12 year-old All-Star team for the squad representing the Swampscott entry in the District 16 tournament, under Duratti, Jim Lombard and Lou Olivieri.

“I love baseball, but hockey is my favorite sport, absolutely,” Mike said. Johnson will be moving up to the big diamond next spring to join the Swampscott Babe Ruth program. Mike is also a member of the North Shore Tigers AAU baseball team.

“I hit a home run last year and it was awesome, a really great feeling,” Mike said. “We lost in the playoffs and the All-Stars, which was bad, but we played pretty good.”

The Johnson family recently took a trip to Hawaii, and Mike got a chance to ride the waves off of the 50th state.

“I took surfing lessons, it was really exiting, I did pretty good,” Mike said.

Mike has lived in town, on Magnolia Road his entire life, and the Johnson family belongs to St. John’s Church.

“I’ve been to some really great places to play hockey, in hockey tournaments all over the place, I’ve been to Canada, to Vermont, to New Hampshire, to places all over here (Massachusetts),” Mike said.

“It’s just something about hockey,” Johnson, who’s a Bantam this season, said. “Some of my best friends, Tyler Donovan, Conner Foley, Jack Moretti and David Peterson play with me, we’ve got a good team (Lynn Comets) this year.”

Mike’s favorite hockey player is Alexander Ovechkin, and he loves the Red Sox and the Bruins, however, his favorite baseball player wears a big NY on his cap.

“I’ve always liked Derek Jeter, he’s a really great player, even though he’s on the Yankees,” Mike said.

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