Johnny Oduya

Johnny Oduya
Position	Defenceman
Shoots	Left
Height Weight	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 200 lb (91 kg)
NHL Team	New Jersey Devils
Nationality	Swedish
Born	(1981-10-01)October 1, 1981, Stockholm, SWE
NHL Draft	221st overall, 2001 Washington Capitals
Pro Career	2003 – present

David Johnny Oduya (born October 1 1981 in Stockholm, Sweden) is a Kenyan-Swedish professional ice hockey defenceman with the New Jersey Devils of the National Hockey League.

Playing career

Oduya's first club was Hammarby IF, where he played as a junior. In 2000, at the age of 19, he moved to North America to play in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League. He spent one season in North America, splitting time between Victoriaville Tigres and Moncton Wildcats. After moving back to Sweden, he signed a contract with Djurgårdens IF in the Swedish Elitserien. During the two seasons he spent with the team, he was known as an aggressive defenceman and a tough guy. At times he fought with opposition players and received loads of penalty minutes. However, he was also a very dependable player and played regularly in the Swedish national team during the Euro Hockey Tour. In the 2005–06 season, after he had been dismissed by the NHL team Washington Capitals, he moved to another Swedish team, Frölunda HC. In Frölunda, he played as a more offensive defenceman, scoring eight goals and eleven assists.

The following season, Oduya signed with the New Jersey Devils in the NHL. Many expected him to be a minor league player, who maybe would get a brief stint or two in the NHL. When several of the Devils' defenders were injured, Oduya got a spot in the lineup. He played surprisingly well in the NHL, sometimes playing around twenty minutes a game. He played in virtually every Devils game that season, except for a few that he missed due to a mid-season injury. However, in the playoffs, he wasn't even at the bench when the Devils were defeated in the second round. Him being benched was mostly due to Andy Greene, who stepped right into the lineup out of college.

During the 2007–2008 season, Oduya became a mainstay on the Devils' blueline. He has developed into a puck-moving defenceman, exhibiting his offensive skills while also playing sound defence in the Devils' end. On February 9, 2008 while playing for the Devils in a game against the Carolina Hurricanes, Oduya scored a rare coast-to-coast goal. He picked up a loose puck behind the goal line in the defensive zone and skated up ice through the Hurricanes' defense, made a move to the left of goalie Cam Ward, and put the puck in the net. For his impressive offensive skills, fans refer to Johnny Oduya as Johnny Orr-duya referring to incredible offensive defenceman, Bobby Orr.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

				Regular season							Playoffs
Season	Team	League		GP	G	A	Pts	+/−	PIM		GP	G	A	Pts	+/−	PIM
1999–00	Hammarby IF	J20		32	3	18	21	+12	48		6	1	2	3	—	4
1999–00	Hammarby IF	HA		1	0	0	0	0	0		1	0	0	0	0	0
2000–01	Moncton Wildcats	QMJHL		44	11	38	49	−9	147		—	—	—	—	—	—
2000–01	Victoriaville Tigres	QMJHL		24	3	16	19	+31	112		13	4	9	13	+2	10
2001–02	Hammarby IF	HA		46	11	14	25	+18	66		2	1	0	1	+1	4
2002–03	Hammarby IF	HA		38	8	20	28	+33	162		10	7	5	12	−1	38
2003–04	Djurgårdens IF	SEL		42	4	4	8	+9	173		4	0	0	0	−3	6
2004–05	Djurgårdens IF	SEL		49	2	4	6	−9	139		12	0	2	2	−1	39
2005–06	Frölunda HC	SEL		47	8	11	19	+12	95		17	1	2	3	0	16
2006–07	New Jersey Devils	NHL		76	2	9	11	−5	61		6	0	1	1	+2	6
2007–08	New Jersey Devils	NHL		75	6	20	26	+27	46		5	0	1	1	−5	6
2008–09	New Jersey Devils	NHL		82	7	22	29	+21	30		7	0	0	0	+3	2
SEL totals				138	14	19	33	+12	407		33	1	4	5	+12	61
NHL totals				151	8	29	37	+22	107		11	0	2	2	−3	12

Family

Johnny is the younger brother of former NHL draftee Fredrik Oduya.

External links

• Johnny Oduya's career stats at The Internet Hockey Database
• Johnny Oduya - player profile and career stats at European Hockey.Net