Welcome to the Thursday edition of your LBC All-Time Florida Panthers Roster Countdown. For all the details on this list, and how it was figured, click here.
Yesterday, we recounted past Panthers C Kevyn Adams (56 games, seven goals, 14 assists), RW Evgeny Dadonov (55 games, 10 goals, 10 assists), D Darren Van Impe (36 games, one goal, six assists), and LW Jon Sim (33 games, 10 goals, eight assists).
In today’s morning entry, we look at another Adams, a Ukrainian defenseman, a backup goaltender, and arguably the biggest draft bust in Panthers history.
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132. Greg Adams
Adams was an undrafted 6’2″ left winger from Nelson, BC. He played collegiate hockey with Northern Arizona University, turning professional in 1984-85 with the AHL Maine Mariners (41 games, 15 goals, 20 assists). In two college seasons he totalled 58 goals and 50 assists in only 55 games.
Adams joined the New Jersey Devils midway through the 1984-85 season, ultimately playing 186 games over three seasons with the club. He finished with 67 goals and 78 assists. He later played with the Vancouver Canucks (eight seasons, 489 games, 179 goals, 190 assists, one All-Star game), the Dallas Stars (four seasons, 177 games, 60 goals, 57 assists), and the Phoenix Coyotes (two seasons, 144 games, 38 goals, 51 assists). He also scored 20 goals and 22 assists in 81 playoff matches. He joined the Panthers as a free agent on November 6th, 2000.
Adams scored in three of his first four Panthers games, collecting his first goal in a 4-1 win over the Carolina Hurricanes on November 15th. He scored two goals twice over the course of the season, finishing with 11 goals on 66 shots and 12 assists. He posted an ATOI of 14:23 at the age of 37, earned 10 PIM and a minus-3 rating.
After being away from the game for a year, Adams played one season with the Frankfurt Lions in 2002-03 before permanently retiring following the season.
All-Time Statline: One season, 60 games, 11 goals, 12 assists, 23 points, minus-3 rating, 10 PIM, 1.8 APS.
131. Alexander Godynyuk
Godynyuk was a 6′ defenseman from Kiev, Ukraine. He was picked up in the sixth round of the 1990 NHL Entry Draft by the Toronto Maple Leafs, 115th overall. In five seasons with Kiev Sokol he played in 98 games, scoring nine goals and seven assists.
In 1990-91, Godynyuk made his NHL debut with the Leafs, scoring three assists through 18 games. He had made three goals and six assists through 31 games of the 1991-92 season when Toronto sent him to the Calgary Flames with Craig Berube, Gary Leeman, Michel Petit and Jeff Reese for Doug Gilmour, Jamie Macoun, Ric Nattress, Rick Wamsley and Kent Manderville on January 2.
In parts of two seasons with the Flames, he played 33 games and scored three goals with five assists. Calgary left him unprotected in the 1993 expansion draft, where the Panthers picked him up.
Godynyuk was one of 19 Panthers to take the ice against the Chicago Blackhawks in their first ever game on October 6, 1993, a 4-4 tie. After making zero goals on 43 shots, along with 10 assists in 26 games, a plus-5 rating and 35 PIM, the Panthers sent him to the Hartford Whalers for Jim McKenzie, on December 16th.
Godynyuk finished out his NHL career as a Whaler, over four seasons playing in 115 games and scoring four goals and 15 assists. He joined Bern in the Swiss League for one season in 1998-99 (43 games, nine goals, 16 assists) and two for the Berlin Polar Bears (84 games, 11 goals, 25 assists).
All-Time Statline: One season, 26 games, zero goals, 10 assists, 10 points, plus-5 rating, 35 PIM, 2.0 APS.
130. Denis Shvidki
Shvidki was a 6’2″ right winger from Kharkov, Ukraine. Florida picked him 12th overall in the first round of the 1999 NHL Entry Draft. In two seasons with the OHL Barrie Colts, he scored 76 goals and 124 assists in 122 games.
In 2000-01, Shvidki opened the season on Florida’s NHL roster. He made his first career goal on November 15th in a 4-1 win over Carolina. After three goals and one assist through 20 games, Florida sent him down to play with the AHL Louisville Panthers (34 games, 15 goals, 11 assists). He was recalled to Florida in February, and played the final 23 games of the season with Florida. He ended up with six goals on 28 shots with 10 assists, a plus-6 rating and 16 PIM through 43 games.
2001-02 would see Shvidki take a step back, missing most of the season with a concussion suffered vs the Philadelphia Flyers on October 4. He played in eight games each with the AHL Utah Grizzlies (two goals, four assists) and Florida (one goal, two assists).
In 2002-03, Shvidki appeared in 23 NHL games with Florida, making four goals and two assists. He played in 54 games with the San Antonio Rampage, scoring eight times with 18 helpers.
Shvikdi made even less of an impact in 2003-04, his last NHL season. He played in two Florida games, totalling four shots on goal. Through his Panthers career, he averaged 11:47 of TOI, and made 11 goals on 72 shots through 76 games. He is widely considered as the biggest draft bust in Panthers history.
He joined Lokomotiv Yaroslavl in the Russian League in 2004-05, playing with a different Russian team in each of the next four seasons, totalling 21 goals and 30 assists in 144 games.
All-Time-Statline: Four seasons, 76 games, 11 goals, 14 assists, 25 points, minus-5 rating, 30 PIM, 2.1 APS.
129. Alex Auld
Auld was Florida’s second round selection in the 1999 NHL Entry Draft, 40th overall. He is a 6’5″ goaltender from Cold Lake, Alberta. In four OHL seasons with the North Bay Centennials, he finished with a 52-61-12 record and a GAA that improved every season, culminating with a 2.54 in 2000-01. Florida traded him to the Vancouver Canucks after the season for a second and a third round pick just after the season ended.
Auld made his pro debut in 2001-02, splitting his season between the AHL Manitoba Moose (11-9-0, 3.53 GAA), the ECHL Columbia Inferno (3-1-2, 1.92 GAA) and the Canucks (1-0-0, 2.00 GAA). With Vancouver, Auld posted a 39-31-8 record over four seasons with a .907 save percentage and a 2.75 GAA. He was their primary netminder in 2005-06, and currently sits in seventh on the Canucks all-time win list. Vancouver traded him back to the Panthers during the 2006 offseason with Todd Bertuzzi and Bryan Allen for Roberto Luongo, Lukas Krajicek and a sixth round pick.
In 2006-07, Auld served as Florida’s number two option in net, backing up future Hall-of-Famer Ed Belfour. He struggled through the season, at one time losing 11 of 12 decisions, including his only Florida shutout, a 1-0 shootout loss to the Montreal Canadiens on November 28. He finished the year with seven wins against 13 losses and five overtime losses.
Auld later played with the Phoenix Coyotes (3-6-0, .880, 3.54), the Boston Bruins (9-7-5, .919, 2.32), the Ottawa Senators (16-18-7, .911, 2.47), the Dallas Stars (9-6-3, .894, 3.00), the New York Rangers (0-1-0, .904, 2.52), the Montreal Canadiens (6-2-2, .914, 2.64), and again with the Senators last season (2-4-2, .884, 3.35).
All-Time Statline: One season, 27 games, 1,471 minutes, 7-13-5 record, one shutout, 729 shots faced, 647 saves, 82 goals allowed, .888 save percentage, 3.35 GAA.
That’s it for today, make sure to check back tomorrow for a look at three Canadians, two centers and a right winger, as well as a left winger from New York.