Roberto Luongo

Verified Timeline

Lore & Background

Luongo's first stint with the Panthers began after a trade from the Islanders in 2000. Over five seasons, he became the backbone of the team, setting franchise records for games played, wins, and shutouts. Despite his individual brilliance, the Panthers were unable to qualify for the Stanley Cup playoffs during this period. After failed contract negotiations in the 2006 offseason, he was traded to the Vancouver Canucks. Luongo returned to the Panthers during the 2013–14 season and played there for the remainder of his career. During this second stint, he qualified for the playoffs with the Panthers only once. Following his playing career, Luongo joined the Panthers' front office as an executive, ultimately winning back-to-back Stanley Cup championships in 2024 and 2025.

In Their Own Story

The arena in St. Leonard, Quebec, where Luongo played his minor hockey, was renamed the Roberto Luongo Arena in August 2009. It is the second arena in the community to be named after an NHL goaltender, following the Martin Brodeur Arena renamed in 2000. Luongo grew up just four blocks away from Brodeur in Saint-Leonard. His father, an Italian immigrant from Santa Paolina, Avellino, worked in construction and furniture delivery, while his mother, an Irish-Canadian, worked in marketing with Air Canada. Luongo is fluent in English, French, and Italian. He began playing organized hockey at age eight as a forward, switching to goaltender at 11 after his team's usual goaltender did not show up and he posted a shutout.

Reader's Guide

Roberto Luongo was selected fourth overall by the New York Islanders in the 1997 NHL entry draft, at the time the highest-picked goaltender in NHL history. He made his NHL debut on November 28, 1999, stopping 43 shots in a 2–1 win against the Boston Bruins. He recorded his first career NHL shutout on December 27, 1999, stopping 34 shots in a 3–0 victory over the Bruins. Luongo is a two-time NHL All-Star (2004 and 2007) and winner of the William M. Jennings Trophy in 2011 (with backup Cory Schneider). He was a finalist for the Vezina Trophy in 2004, 2007, and 2011, the Lester B. Pearson Award in 2004 and 2007, and the Hart Memorial Trophy in 2007. He is third all-time in games played as an NHL goaltender (1,044) and fourth all-time in wins (489). He employed the butterfly style of goaltending.

Did You Know?

• Luongo was the last active goaltender to have played in the NHL in the 1990s.
• He served as the first NHL goaltender to be a team captain since Bill Durnan in the 1947–48 season, doing so for the Vancouver Canucks for two seasons.
• Luongo won back-to-back President's Cups in the QMJHL with Val-d'Or Foreurs and Acadie-Bathurst Titan.
• He won two Olympic gold medals with Team Canada, in 2010 and 2014.
• Luongo's father is an Italian immigrant from Santa Paolina, Avellino, and his mother is Irish-Canadian.