Andrej Podkonický
Andrej Podkonický is a Slovak former professional ice hockey player. He played in the National Hockey League with the Florida Panthers and the Washington Capitals. He is currently the head coach of his original club, HKm Zvolen, of the Slovak Extraliga.Playing career
Podkonický was born in Zvolen, Czechoslovakia. As a youth, he played in the 1992 Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament with a team from Slovakia.
He was drafted 196th overall by the St. Louis Blues in the 1996 NHL Entry Draft. After two seasons with the American Hockey League's Worcester IceCats, he was traded to the Florida Panthers for Eric Boguniecki on December 17, 2000. He played six games for the Panthers during the 2000–01 NHL season, scoring one goal. Podkonický then moved to Europe and played for HIFK in Finland's SM-liiga, HC Slovan Bratislava in the Slovak Extraliga and the Iserlohn Roosters in Germany's Deutsche Eishockey Liga. He signed with the Washington Capitals in 2003 and was assigned to the AHL's Portland Pirates, playing just two games for the Capitals. Podkonický then moved back to the Czech Republic and signed for HC Bílí Tygři Liberec. He spent the 2007–08 season in Russia for Vityaz Chekhov before returning to Liberec.International play
Podkonický played for Slovakia at the 2007 IIHF World Championship and the 2008 IIHF World Championship.International
Awards and honours
