In the end it was the Nashville Predators’ prospects that picked up the win, 3-2, over the Tampa Bay Lightning’s prospects. While it is always nice to pick up a victory, how the game was played is more important than the final score. For the most part, it was a fairly well-played game for the Bolts that provided a pretty accurate representation of where their prospect group is at a whole.
The initial impression of the group as a whole is that this current crop of future rookies is an ornery bunch. Pretty much from the first drop of the puck through the end of the game, they were forechecking, hitting, and getting into post-whistle scrums. They didn’t back down from a challenge, and while it led to more than their fair share of penalties, it lines up well with how the NHL seems to be going as the Florida Panthers have become the poster children for physical play backed by offensive talent.
It’s the second part that the younglings struggled with a bit last night. There is no doubt that they are a hard-working group of players, but they do lack the high-end finishing skills in the final third of the ice. Yes, Ethan Czata scored on a pretty backhand goal, but it came on the power play. Through the better part of the first two periods, that was the only time the Lightning really pushed play in the offensive zone. They did pick it up in the third period, and Aiden Foster briefly tied the game with a nice goal on the backdoor, but as a whole, most of the game was played in the Lightning end.
That’s the price the Lightning pay for sacrificing their top draft picks to the altar of the trade deadline gods. By contrast, Nashville had five of their own first round picks on the roster and two of them Matthew Wood and Brady Martin were two of the best players on the ice.
As always with these games, there is a tendency to read a little too much into the result. Most of these games are basically two steps above a scrimmage. The players have had minimal practice time together and the coaching staff avoids overloading them with schemes and systems since they will be parting ways in a couple of weeks to go back to their junior or AHL teams. It’s more about watching a player’s instincts with the puck than how they adapt to a system. For the most part, the Lightning players made good decisions and didn’t get themselves into any trouble. In the end, that’s not a bad result.
Quick Notes:
Harrison Meneghin wasn’t just the best player for the Lightning, he was the best player on the ice. He made several big stops, especially in the first period, and looked really smooth moving from post to post. The goals he gave up were a power play goal, a penalty shot, and a screened shot in the third period. Throughout the game he was calm in net and tracked the puck through traffic really well. He’s doing nothing to dissuade the notion of being a diamond in the seventh-round rough.
Ethan Czata was really noticeable in the first period and showed the combination of scoring and physicality that makes him an intriguing second round pick for the Bolts. His goal was an absolute dart of a backhand from distance.
Sam O’Reilly was all over the ice. Penalty kill, power play (he assisted on Czata’s goal), and 5v5. It’s just one game, but he showed a lot of the skill that has him compared to a young Anthony Cirelli. Good positioning and smart plays.
Would have liked to see a little more out Ethan Gauthier and Dylan Duke. Felt like they had good games, but both have several rookie showcases under their belt and should be a step ahead of some of the other prospects. That being said, Gauthier was in the middle of most of the scrums on the ice.
Grant Spada was a player that stood out. He’s a big, wiry guy at 6’5″ and 185 lbs. There were a few plays in front of the net where he won the position battle and boxed out (or tossed to the ground) the Nashville player. If he adds another 10-15 pounds of muscle over the next couple of years he could be an imposing blueliner in the Erik Cernak mold.
The kids are back on the ice today at 5:00 PM as they take on the Florida Panthers prospects. Stream it on the Lightning’s website or watch on WXPX Tampa Bay 66.
