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Three Stars from the Lightning’s Rookie Showcase

Posted on by Justin G.
A Lightning prospect sitting on the bench press station in the team gym.
Photo courtesy of the Tampa Bay Lightning via their Twitter

It was a pretty solid three games in four days for the Tampa Bay Lightning’s prospects as they took on fellow youngsters from the Nashville Predators, Carolina Hurricanes, and Florida Panthers in the 2023 Southeast Rookie Showcase. The Bolts finished with a 1-1-1- record while scoring nine goals and allowing nine goals. While the majority of the players had at least a few minutes that stood out throughout the tournament, there were three that really opened up some eyes.

Please take all of this with a grain of salt the size of the Hope Diamond. It’s young players playing against other young players, all who have had only a couple of days of practice to get to know each other. The ages range from 18-years-old to about 24, and all levels of prospects from recent draft picks to ECHL fringe players are on the ice. There are no TV timeouts, no video reviews, and no scraping of the ice. Yes, it’s hockey, but it’s not NHL hockey. Just because a player had a really good tournament doesn’t mean they’re going to earn a spot on the NHL squad. At the same time, a player isn’t doomed just because they might not have had the best three games.

Before we get to the three stars, here are a few other thoughts from the three games. First of all, the Lightning were really well prepared for game action. Their special teams looked good, especially in the first game, and for the most parts their breakout plays and some of the offensive zone plays looked crisp. So, kudos to Joel Bouchard and his staff for getting the team ready to play.

It was kind of an unusual construction for the roster. As we mentioned in the preview, most of the Lightning’s top prospects weren’t there due to either playing commitments in Europe or NCAA regulations. There were no first-round picks on the ice, because well, we know Julien BriseBois is allergic to drafting players in the first round. The roster they put on the ice was a little older and had a lot more professional experience than some of the other squads. Even relatively new players like Waltteri Merela and Maxim Groshev have spent the last few years playing at a high level in Europe. Did it give them a bit of an edge? Maybe, but just like the other three teams these players had minimal time on the ice together prior to the first game.

For the most part the invitees showed pretty well. The most notable was probably Gabriel Szturc, the undrafted center from the Kelowna Rockets. The 19-year-old was feisty and around the front of the net a lot. He’ll probably spend another season in the WHL before likely signing a pro contract in the spring. Defenseman Scott Walford was okay, he didn’t stand out in a good way or a bad way when he was on the ice. Ben Gaudreau had one start in net and he looked pretty sharp for most of the game in the 3-3 draw with the Hurricanes. Like Szturc, he’s likely heading back to junior hockey for another season with Sarnia, but I wouldn’t be surprised if he ends up in Orlando at some point if no other organization gives him a shot.

It was a shame that a few players didn’t get into the action due to injuries. Jack Finley could be on the cusp of a call-up to the Lightning during the season and it would be a shame if his season is delayed as he recovers from a shoulder injury. Seeing Roman Schmidt leave the third game after an injury was unfortunate as well. Hopefully, it’s nothing serious and they can both be ready to go when the Crunch open their camp.

Now, onto the stars!

3. Jack Thompson – defense

After a kind of ho-hum first game, I thought Thompson really turned things on against Carolina and Florida. He flashed his offensive ability against Carolina, carrying the puck smoothly through the neutral zone a few times and then letting his big shot from the point create a little havoc in front of the net.

In the game against Florida, he wasn’t quite as involved offensively, but he showed his versatility as he played on both the left and right side of the defense after Schmidt left the game. Along with Declan Carlile, Thompson was likely one of the top players in terms of ice time for the Lightning in the tournament.

It will be a big year for him as he looks to claim the number one spot on the Crunch to start the season. Did he do enough to earn a shot at making the Lightning out of training camp? Probably not. There is a bit of a logjam in the sixth and seventh spots and the players ahead of him have a bit more experience. If he’s able to get off to a strong start in Syracuse, he could pull a Nick Perbix and earn a spot through an injury call-up.

2. Max Groshev – forward

Groshev was by far the most noticeable player in the showcase for the Lightning. He finished with one goal and two assists along with approximately 329 scoring chances. Every time he was on the ice it seemed like good things were happening for the Lightning. He wasn’t just sitting back and letting his linemates (usually Tristan Allard and Ethan Gauthier) drive the play either. Groshev was causing havoc in the neutral zone and showing some surprising speed once he had the puck on his stick.

For his goal seen above, he takes advantage of an atrocious angle and slight slip by the Florida defender and beats Mack Guzda, who had a really good night in goal, cleanly. Groshev had two other breakaways in this game alone and spent all weekend hounding the puck and creating turnovers.

He’ll have to show Bouchard and the staff that he can keep that same energy going against older players as he adjusts to life in North America. If he can do that, the Crunch will have an extremely useful forward that will make life tough for opponents in the AHL North Division.

1. Walterri Merela – forward

While Groshev might have been the most noticeable player on the ice, Merela probably did the most to advance his case with the coaching staff. The Finnish forward finished with two goals and one assist in the showcase while playing at even strength, on the penalty kill, and on the power play. He was strong on the puck, went into corners to get loose pucks, and generally had a nice, polished game that would fit in well on the fourth line for a NHL team.

Alex Killorn would be proud of this assist as Merela falls to the ice, but still finishes off the play.

Like Groshev, he will have to adjust to playing on the smaller ice, but it didn’t look like he had too much trouble in his first few games in a North American rink. It’s not surprising that a 25-year-old with 212 games of experience in the Liiga would look good against a bunch of 20-and-under players, but his technique and dedication to making the small plays to clear out a puck, or to get to the front of the net to create a scoring chance, play well against any level of competition.

He will likely get a few more reps with some of his NHL teammates in training camp based on his performance over the last four days. The big question will be if he can build off of this and leapfrog some of the other players on the roster that might be an early favorite for the twelfth and thirteenth forward spots on the roster.

Again, it’s easy to read too much into these rookie showcases, but for a Lightning organization that is light on high-end prospects, it is a good sign that some of their free agent signings and lower-round picks are showing signs that they have the skillset to play the professional game. Hopefully, what we saw over the last few days is an opening chapter in a long story for some of these players.

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