1993-94 Regular Season NHL hockey arrived in Miami, Florida, in the spring of 1993, the second NHL franchise to call Florida home. Wayne Huizenga, founder of Waste Management, Inc. and co-owner of Blockbuster Video, purchased the expansion franchise, naming it "Florida Panthers" in honor of the endangered panther population in the state. The team played it's home games at the 14,703-seat Miami Arena, sharing the building with the NBA's Miami Heat. Huizenga hired wisely for his new franchise, bringing in former Islanders GM Bill Torrey as President and Bobby Clarke as GM. Clarke, in turn, hired former Rangers head coach Roger Nielsen to lead the new franchise behind the bench. The Panthers selected defenseman Rob Niedermayer with their first pick in the NHL Draft, a smart move, as Niedermayer would play for the Panthers for the next eight seasons. In the expansion draft, Florida built a tough, defensive-minded team that was strong in net. Thei...