It’s finally Draft Day for the Tampa Bay Lightning. Believe it our not, Julien BriseBois made it all the way to the draft without burning a second-round pick. As of this posting, the Lightning will be making their first selection towards the end of the second round as they currently hold the 56th pick (originally the Los Angeles Kings pick). Here is a quick look at some of the best players left on the board after the lengthy first round on Friday night.
Milton Gastrin – Center – MoDo Hockey
It’s doubtful that he falls all the way to 56, but if he does, he checks a lot of Lightning boxes. He is solid in all three zones. He projects out as a middle-six forward that can chip in enough goals to be a valuable depth add (he had 18 goals in 40 games for MoDo in the J20 Nationell league), and has a high hockey IQ. He will also stay in Europe for a couple of seasons, which would line up nicely with some of the aging contracts currently on the Lightning roster.
Owen Conrad – Defenseman – Charlottetown Islanders
How about a big (6’3″, 209 lbs.) defenseman with a big shot? His skating is already at a NHL level, which is nice for a big man. He uses his size to shove players out from in front of the net while having a keen ability to make a nice first pass out of the zone. Will he put up a lot of points at the NHL level? Probably not, but he has the skills to be a solid, responsible addition to the blueline.
Jack Murtagh – Center – USNTDP
Another pivotman who will probably find his way to the NHL on the wing, he has solid skating skills and he can score from outside of the dangerous areas on the ice. He also plays with a non-stop motor which coaches love.
Nathan Behm – Forward – Kamloops Blazers
The Athletic’s Scott Wheeler mocked Behm to the Lightning in his final draft preview. If he makes it to 56, the Bolts would get a very talented winger if they drafted him. He is a right-hand shot that has shown elite talent at times. Consistency comes into play, but he can score from all areas of the offensive zone. Behm also has enough playmaking skill to avoid becoming a one-dimensional player.
Cameron Schmidt – Left Wing – Vancouver Giants
There is always one prospect you fall in love with when you scour through all of the players. Enter Cameron Schmidt. He has first-round talent (40 goals in 61 games) but a seemingly collective run on 6’5″ players last night pushed him to Day 2. Elite Prospects lists him as the fastest player in the draft and an ability to shoot off the rush would instantly put him among the top of the Lightning prospect ranks. Size (5’7″ 161 lbs.) could be an issue in translating his junior skills into the pro ranks, but he has that special spark that top scorers seem to possess. Could the Lightning swap Isaac Howard for a higher spot in order to take someone who has a similar skill set?
Jack Ivonkovic – Goaltender – Brampton Steelheads
Yes, Harrison Meneghin is turning out to be a great find, but a team can never have too many goaltending prospects in their system. He relies more on his athleticism than his positioning and diagnosis of the play on ice, but that could be said about Andrei Vasilevskiy as a prospect as well. His lack of height (listing him at 6’0″ seems to be generous) could propel him down into the Lightning’s range, but Dustin Wolf is showing that lack of size isn’t an impediment to success in the NHL.
