At least there won’t be a contract dispute with this year’s top draft selection. The Tampa Bay Lightning have signed their top pick in the 2025 NHL draft, Ethan Czata, to a three-year, entry-level contract. The Niagra IceDog was selected in the second round with the 56th pick this summer. While the agreement is in place, don’t expect the 18-year-old to be suiting up for the Bolts anytime soon as the contract can slide if Czata returns to junior hockey this season.
According to PuckPedia, the contract will carry a cap hit of $931,667 once Czata makes it to the NHL. As is the case with most ELC’s, there are performance bonuses in the first two years of the deal ($102,500 in the first year and $27,500 in the second). He’ll be a restricted free agent at the end of it.
When interviewed after the draft John Russo, the team’s director of amateur scouting, admitted that Czata was a player they had targeted prior to the draft, but weren’t sure he’d make it all the way to the 56th pick. They were happy to pick up the 6’1″, 179 lb. forward whose style should fit in well with the way the NHL is trending. Despite not being the biggest guy on the ice, he does play with a bit of an edge and doesn’t mind initiating contact.
He falls in line with the style of prospect the Lightning have been comfortable drafting ever since Steve Yzerman and Al Murray took over the organization – two-way forwards with high hockey sense. If things develop correctly for him, Czata should end up with a middle six role and possibly lead a penalty kill unit. Time will tell if his offense translates to the professional level, but it was a positive that his goal output increased from 7 in his first season in the OHL to 21 last year as his role with the IceDogs increased.
Part of that hockey sense was seen by scouts as the left-shot forward is able to find the open areas on the ice and set up his teammates for scoring chances. When he doesn’t have the puck, he hunts for it, often using his body to dispossess opponents of it. Even if he doesn’t cause a turnover on the forecheck, he makes the other team pay for possessing it.
As Elite Prospect’s scout Hadi Kalakeche put it following a game in January,
“A great game from Czata, who continues to be a menace in all three zones. Landed at least a half-dozen solid hits in open ice, and set the tone early to make this game particularly chippy. Tools-wise, there are some great elements to work with. His skating looked good tonight — good small-ice explosiveness and edgework — and his fine motor skills really shine when working in tight quarters.”
Skating is something that does need to improve for him to move up the rankings. At the junior level, his high work rate can mask some issues, but as the competition improves, so will the need for him to be better on his skates. Speaking to reporters at the Lightning’s development camp, he was looking forward to working on that part of the game.
In all likelihood, Czata heads back to Niagra this season for at least one more year of junior hockey. After that, he could be a player that benefits from a rule in the new CBA that allows each club to have a 19-year-old player play in the American Hockey League. Under the current CBA, players coming out of the CHL have to be at least 20 in order to play minor-league hockey.
So, that’s something to keep an eye on this spring. With another strong season in Niagra, it wouldn’t be out of the realm of possibility that he joins the Syracuse Crunch on a try-out contract for a few games, and then heads into the 2026-27 season with a solid chance to make their roster.
