Welcome back to the latest edition of your Florida Panthers All-Time Roster Countdown. Today we break into the top 100 with a familiar face. For more details on the makeup of the list, and how it was ordered, click here.
In yesterday’s entry, we recapped former Panther defensemen Jordan Leopold (61 games, seven goals, 11 assists), Lyle Odelein (82 games, four goals, 12 assists), and Anders Eriksson (60 games, zero goals, 21 assists). Today, we reminisce on a Russian left winger, a Czech defenseman, and a currently rostered Panther at number 100, a left winger from Finland.
Follow the link below to read on.
102. Andrei Lomakin
Lomakin was a 5’9″ left winger from Voskresensk, USSR. The Philadelphia Flyers spent a seventh round pick on him, selecting him 138th overall in the 1991 NHL Entry Draft. In nine seasons of USSR League play, Lomakin scored 100 goals and 104 assists in 382 games.
1991-92 would see Lomakin make the Flyers squad out of camp. In two seasons with the club he totalled 22 goals and 28 assists in 108 games, registering a plus-9 with 60 PIM. Left unprotected, he was selected by the brand-new Panthers in the Expansion Draft of 1993.
Lomakin registered career NHL highs in most categories for the upstart Kitties. He started the season by scoring a goal and adding an assist in the Panthers first ever game, a 4-4 tie with the Chicago Blackhawks. Over the course of the season, he registered multiple points on six occasions, including a two goal, one assist performance in a 6-5 win over the Los Angeles Kings. In 76 contests, he totalled a team second best 19 goals on 139 shots, added 28 assists, 26 PIM, and finished with a plus-1 rating.
In 1994-95, Lomakin was limited by injuries to only 31 games. He only scored one goal on 25 shots, made six assists, and finished with a minus-5 rating. Later, he played in the German Elite League with EHC Eisbaren Berlin (26 games, 21 goals, 14 assists) and the Frankfurt Lions (12 games, three goals, four assists).
Lomakin lost his life to an unidentified form of cancer. He died in Detroit where he was receiving treatment on December 23, 2006.
All-Time Statline: Two seasons, 107 games, 20 goals, 34 assists, 54 points, minus-4 rating, 32 PIM, 3.5 APS.
101. Lukas Krajicek
Krajicek was a 6′ defenseman from Prostejov, Czech Republic. The Panthers chose him in the first round of the 2001 NHL Entry Draft with the 24th overall pick. In three OHL seasons with the Peterborough Petes, he totalled 29 goals and 101 assists in 168 games.
During his tenure with the Petes, Krajicek also made his professional debut with the Panthers, averaging 13:23 as part of the third pairing in five games with the Cats in April, 2002 at the age of 18. In 2002-03, he continued to play with the Petes, also making three starts in San Antonio with the Rampage.
2003-04 would see Krajicek spend most of the season with the Rampage (54 games, five goals, 12 assists). He was twice called up to play with Florida, totalling 18 games. He scored his first NHL goal in a 4-1 loss to the Detroit Red Wings on December 15. It was the only goal he scored that season on 16 shots, also making six assists and spending 12 minutes in the sin bin. He averaged 13:32 TOI, finishing with a minus-2.
2004-05 would see Krajicek hone his craft with the Rampage, playing in 78 games and scoring two goals and 22 assists. He returned to the Cats the following season, spending the whole year with Florida. He would appear in 67 games, averaging 18:30 TOI as part of the second pairing. He scored two goals on 89 shots, dished out 14 helpers, and finished with a plus-1 rating and 50 PIM. The Panthers traded him to the Vancouver Canucks with Roberto Luongo and a sixth round pick for Todd Bertuzzi, Bryan Allen and Alex Auld on Draft Day, 2006.
In addition to his time with the Canucks (117 games, five goals, 22 assists, minus-7 rating, 100 PIM), Krajicek would also appear with the Tampa Bay Lightning (94 games, two goals, 18 assists, minus-12 rating, 69 PIM), and the Philadelphia Flyers (27 games, one goal, one assist, minus-10 rating, 14 PIM).
Krajicek spent the 2010-11 season in the Czech League with Trinec Ocelari HC (48 games, six goals, 14 assists) and 2011-12 with the KHL Minsk Dynamo (40 games, two goals, 12 assists).
All-Time Statline: Three seasons, 90 games, three goals, 20 assists, 23 points, minus-1 rating, 62 PIM, 3.6 APS.
100. Sean Bergenheim
Bergenheim was a 5’11’ left winger from Helsinki, Finland. He was picked in the first round of the 2002 NHL Entry Draft by the New York Islanders, 22nd overall. In three seasons with Jokerit Helsinki, he scored seven goals and seven assists in 76 contests.
2003-04 would see Bergenheim make his North American debut, playing in 18 contests with the Islanders (one goal, one assist). In 2004-05, he stayed busy with the AHL Bridgeport Sound Tigers (61 games, 15 goals, 14 assists).
Bergenheim played the majority of the 2005-06 season with the Tigers (55 games, 25 goals, 22 assists), reappearing with the Isles for 28 games, mostly in March and April. He would collect four goals and five assists with the team. He elected to head back overseas for the 2006-07 campaign, splitting the season between the Russian Yaroslavl Lokomotiv (nine games, one goal, four assists) and Vastra Frolunda HC of the Swedish League (36 games, 16 goals, 17 assists).
Beginning in 2007-08, Bergenheim returned to the NHL permanently. He would play three more seasons with the Islanders. His career numbers with New York: 246 games, 40 goals, 40 assists, minus-19 rating, 195 PIM. He signed on as a free agent with the Tampa Bay Lightning prior to the 2010-11 season.
In 14 minutes per game over 80 games with the Bolts, Bergenheim totalled 14 goals and 15 assists. During his time with the Islanders, the team never got a sniff of postseason play. Much to everyone’s amazement, Bergenheim turns into a whirling dervish of terror to opposing goaltenders when the games really start to count. In 16 playoff matches with Tampa Bay, he lit the lamp a team second best nine times, finishing with 11 points.
Bergenheim was part of the massive influx of talent amassed by Dale Tallon on July 2, 2011. Even though he only played in 62 games due to injury, he finished fourth on the team with 17 goals (on 185 shots) along with six assists, a minus-5 rating and 48 PIM. He finished up the season on the red-hot second line with Marcel Goc and the recently departed Mikael Samuelsson. As displayed the prior season with the Bolts, Bergenheim becomes the Incredible Hulk when the playoffs start. In seven playoff games, he led the Panthers with six points (three goals, three assists).
Panther Sean Bergenheim scores first goal 4/13/12 (via NHLVideo)
Bergenheim is currently under contract to remain a Panther through the 2014-15 season with a salary of $2.75M. May we see him add to his playoff mythos.
All-Time Statline: One season, 62 games, 17 goals, six assists, 23 points, minus-5 rating, 48 PIM, 3.6 APS.
Thanks for spending a few minutes reading up on America’s favorite hockey team. Leave some comments below, vote in the poll, and check back tomorrow for a Slovak defenseman, a Canadian center, and another defenseman, this one a native of Germany.
Predict Bergenheim’s campaign.
| Regression: <15 points | 3 |
| Stability: ~ 20 goals, ~30 points | 51 |
| Progress: ~25 goals, ~40 points | 32 |
| Exceptional: >30 goals, >50 points | 8 |