Afanasenkov began his
North American
ice hockey career after being drafted by the
Tampa Bay Lightning in the
1998 NHL entry draft in the third round, 72nd overall. He started playing in the
Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL) for the
Moncton Wildcats in his
first season, and then for the
Sherbrooke Castors in the
1999–2000 and
2000–01 seasons. Following the 2000–01 season, he was signed by the Lightning. Until the
2003–04 NHL season, he would split his time between the Lightning and their farm team. He would play for one
IHL team (the
Detroit Vipers) and two
AHL teams (the
Grand Rapids Griffins and
Springfield Falcons). During the
2003–04 NHL season, his
rookie season, he scored six
goals and ten
assists during the regular season and three
points during the Lightning's post season run to the
2004 Stanley Cup. Following the
lockout, he returned to the Lightning, but with the presence of
Vincent Lecavalier,
Martin St. Louis, and
Brad Richards, he had limited playing time. He did not put up the numbers he could, and so, on December 30, 2006, the Lightning waived him and he was picked up by the
Philadelphia Flyers. While in Philadelphia, Afanasenkov picked up the nickname
"The Shark", scoring 15 points (8 goals, 7 assists) in 41 games with the Flyers. A pending restricted free agent, he was not tendered a qualifying offer and became an unrestricted free agent. He signed with
Dynamo Moscow on August 1, 2007 and signed on 26 September 2009 for
Lokomotiv Yaroslavl. ==Career statistics==