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LBC’s All-Time Florida Panthers Roster Countdown: 93-91

Welcome back to the land of the living and another week of your offseason-long NHL fix of Panther lore. For all the details on the standards for the list, click here.

When we left off on Friday, we had just covered D Joel Kwiatkowski (114 games, nine goals, 13 assists), C Marcel Goc (57 games, 11 goals, 16 assists), and D Joe Cirella (83 games, one goal, 10 assists). Today, we’ll check out three defensemen from Canada, one from Alberta and two from Ontario.

Click the jump to follow along.

93. Brent Severyn

When drafted, Severyn was a 6’2″ defenseman from Vergreville, Alberta. He was selected by the Winnipeg Jets in the fifth round of the 1984 NHL Entry Draft with the 99th overall pick. He played three seasons between four teams in the WHL, totalling 41 goals and 94 assists in 181 contests. He would go on to play two seasons of collegiate hockey at the University of Alberta (87 games, 28 goals, 47 assists), departing after the 1987-88 season.

After signing a free agent contract with the Quebec Nordiques, 1988-89 would see Severyn make his NHL debut with the AHL Halifax Citadels (47 games, two goals, 12 assists). He would split the 1989-90 season between the Citadels (43 games, six goals, nine assists) and the Nordiques (35 games, two assists). It would be his last NHL action for four seasons.

After spending 1990-91 back with Halifax (50 games, seven goals, 26 assists), Severyn would find himself traded to the New Jersey Devils for Dave Marcinyshyn. Although the Devils thought enough of him to engineer the trade, they would not call him up to New Jersey. He spent two seasons with the AHL Utica Devils (157 games, 31 goals, 65 assists).

Prior to the Panthers inaugural 1993-94 season, Severyn was traded to the Winnipeg Jets for a sixth round draft choice, then quickly traded again to the Panthers for Milan Tichy. He scored his first ever NHL goal on October 17, in a 3-3 tie with the Tampa Bay Lightning. Over the course of the season, he was Florida’s default tough guy, getting in 13 fights and leading the team with 156 penalty minutes. He also scored four goals on 93 shots along with seven assists and a minus-1 rating.

Lyle Odelein vs Severyn Round 1 Dec 15, 1993 (via hockeyfightsdotcom)

Severyn, like every other NHL player, sat out approximately three months while striking during the first half of the 1994-95 season. After scoring one goal on 10 shots with an assist and 37 penalty minutes through nine games, the Panthers sent him to the New York Islanders on March 3 for a fourth round draft choice (Dave Duerden).

After playing with the Islanders (84 games, two goals, 11 assists, plus-4, 214 PIM), Severyn made NHL appearances with the Colorado Avalanche (66 games, one goal, four assists, minus-6, 193 PIM), the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (37 games, one goal, three assists, minus-3, 133 PIM), and the Dallas Stars (30 games, one goal, two assists, minus-2, 50 PIM). He later played two seasons in the German Elite League with the Munich Barons (18 games, two goals, six assists), and the Krefeld Penguins (56 games, six goals, 12 assists). He is currently the head of Severyn Sports, a sports promotion conglomerate.

All-Time Statline: Two seasons, 76 games, five goals, eight assists, 13 points, minus-4 rating, 193 PIM, 4.0 APS.

92. Dennis Wideman

Wideman was listed as a 6′ defenseman from Kitchener, Ontario when the Buffalo Sabres picked him up. He was drafted in the eighth round of the 2002 NHL Entry Draft with the 241st overall pick. Before turning pro, Wideman enjoyed five seasons in the OHL between the Sudbury Wolves (88 games, 17 goals, 37 assists), and the London Knights (204 games, 79 goals, 118 assists).

Prior to his first pro season (2004-05), Wideman signed on as a free agent with the St. Louis Blues. He spent the lockout cancelled season with the AHL Worchester IceCats (79 games, 13 goals, 30 assists). 2005-06 would see him split the season between the AHL Peoria Rivermen (12 games, two goals, four assists), and the Blues (67 games, eight goals, 16 assists).

In 2006-07, Wideman would stay with St. Louis through the first half of the season (55 games, five goals, 17 assists). The Blues traded him to the Boston Bruins on February 27 for Brad Boyes. In parts of four seasons with the Bruins, he would collect 33 goals and 86 assists with a plus-26 rating (including an NHL sixth best plus-32 in 2008-09). Boston traded him along with first (traded to L.A.) and third (Kyle Rau) round picks to the Panthers prior to the 2010-11 season for Nathan Horton and Gregory Campbell.

Wideman led the Cats in ATOI, with 23:58 on the first defensive pairing. He had three multi-point games with the Panthers, scoring a total of nine goals on 135 shots along with 24 assists. All offensive totals were good enough to lead Florida despite him playing in only 61 contests. The Panthers sent him to the Washington Capitals for Jake Hauswirth and a third round pick on February 28. He finished the season with the Capitals, scoring one goal and six assists.

Dennis Wideman plays goalie 11/12/10 (via NHLVideo)

In 2011-12, Wideman made his first ever All-Star roster, scoring 11 goals and 34 assists while playing in every Caps game. He recently signed a five-year, $26,250,000 contract with the Calgary Flames.

All-Time Statline: One season, 61 games, nine goals, 24 assists, 33 points, minus-26 rating, 33 PIM, 4.1 APS.

91. Nick Boynton

Boynton was a 6’2″ defenseman from Nobleton, Ontario when selected originally by the Washington Capitals in the first round of the 1997 NHL Entry Draft, ninth overall. He was a two year veteran of the OHL Ottawa 67’s at the time, but elected not to sign with the Caps. Their right to sign him expired after two more OHL seasons, and he was again selected in the first round, with the 21st overall pick by the Boston Bruins. He totalled 41 goals and 144 assists in 218 OHL contests.

In 1999-00, Boynton played 53 games with the AHL Providence Bruins, scoring five times with 14 assists. He would make his NHL debut late in the season, posting a minus-5 rating in five games with Boston. He also played the following season with Providence (78 games, six goals, 27 assists), appearing in one Boston game in October.

2001-02 would see Boynton open the season with the NHL Bruins. He would remain on the NHL roster for the next three seasons, totalling 17 goals and 55 assists in 239 contests. He would represent the Bruins at the 2004 All-Star game. After spending 2004-05 with the EIHL Nottingham Panthers (19 games, three goals, five assists), he returned to the Bruins for one more season, scoring five goals and seven assists in 54 games. The Bruins sent him to the Phoenix Coyotes during the 2006 offseason for Paul Mara.

After two seasons with Phoenix (138 games, five goals, 18 assists), Boynton was dealt to the Panthers with Keith Ballard and a second round pick for Olli Jokinen. In 16:36 of ATOI, he scored five times on 104 shots, dishing out 16 helpers. He led the Panthers with 91 PIM, collecting a plus-7 rating along the way as Florida missed out on the playoffs due to a tiebreaker with the Montreal Canadiens. On February 27, he got in an argument with then-coach Pete DeBoer, earning him a plane trip home and three games on the bench.

After the season, Boynton signed a free agent contract with the Anaheim Mighty Ducks (42 games, one goal, six assists, 59 PIM). He later played for the Chicago Blackhawks (48 games, one goal, nine assists, 48 PIM) and the Philadelphia Flyers (10 games, minus-3 rating). He did not appear professionally in the 2011-12 season, and is currently a free agent.

All-Time Statline: One season, 68 games, five goals, 16 assists, 21 points, plus-7 rating, 91 PIM, 4.1 APS.

Thanks for stopping by and picking up what I’m laying down. Leave comments below, and check back tomorrow for the 49th entry in our countdown. We’ll take a look at two defensemen, a Latvian and a Canadian, as well as a center from Edmonton.

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