The 32-in-32 Series is an annual event here at DobberProspects and has been condensed from two articles to one. The article will bring you: The highlighted team’s draft; insights into its off-season moves; looking at prospect risers, fallers and likely prospects to play NHL games; and of course, the writers’ top-20 prospects. Articles may be brought back when an important team update occurs, so check back because we plan to fill your hockey withdrawal needs all off-season!

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Read past 32 series stories here: https://dobberprospects.com/category/feature/32-in-32-series/

Make sure to check out the Tampa Bay Lightning team page here: https://dobberprospects.com/team/tampa-bay-lightning/

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Welcome back. The Lightning continue their run of consistently contending. They improved to 106 points and put together one of their better regular seasons in franchise history. Nikita Kucherov continues to be an elite franchise player and found another level, finishing second in league scoring with 130 points and taking home his second Hart Trophy.

The regular-season success did not carry over into the playoffs. Tampa pushed Montreal all the way to Game 7, only for the season to end in a frustrating 2-1 loss despite clearly being the better team in the series and holding the Canadiens to just nine shots in the final game. The Lightning remain one of the top teams in the league, but how long can their sustained run of excellence continue, who knows? There is no reason to expect it to slow down much anytime soon.

BriseBois has set out on a new round of changes surrounding the core. Nick Paul and Darren Raddysh are gone, while Ilya Mikheyev, Jeffrey Viel, Dennis Hildeby, John Carlson and more have been brought in. Carlson gives Tampa another high-end offensive, but old, option from the blue line, while Hildeby is expected to step directly into the backup role behind Vasilevskiy.

The outlook remains the same as it has for the last few seasons. Tampa still has Kucherov, Vasilevskiy, Point, Hagel, what is left of Hedman, and management is continuing the push. With some younger players beginning to push for larger roles as well, the Lightning will once again enter the season expecting to contend.

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NHL Draft Recap

Round 2, 52 overall: Oleg Kulebyakin, LW/RW

One of the more purely skilled QMJHL players, Kulebyakin led his team with 73 points, using his excellent hands, puck control and accuracy to exploit holes and poor gap control from defenses. The issue is whether his style can translate to the pros. He struggles to create openings himself that aren’t just from exploiting poor defense or using his raw skills, that style is not very translatable as it is today.

His ability to battle and forecheck is poor. Kulebyakin easily gets pushed aside and out-muscled. NHL defensemen will neutralize him by closing off the rush and forcing him to chip-and-chase, something he’s not well suited for. The next step for Kulebyakin is learning to leverage his skills to create openings and manipulate defenses so he can use his existing skill set to score.

Round 3, 90 overall: Tomas Kralovic, RHD

Královič is a rare D+3 draftee. His continued progression year over year has been at a pace that caught the Lightning’s attention. Top-10 in scoring in Slovakia’s top league while helping Slovan Bratislava reach the finals. Standing at 6-3, Královič plays an active role in attacks and rushes, frequently joining the rush, activating and using his shot and distribution on the power-play. A good skating base lets Královič roam the ice and take chances while still being able to recover in time. He still needs work on the defensive side. He can get rushed too easily when pressured, fail to spot dangerous opponents, and his playmaking doesn’t project well enough for him to be a top offensive defenseman in the NHL. He should be a real option to start in the NHL or be a one-and-done in the AHL.

Round 5, 134 overall: Morgan Anderberg, LW

Anderberg earned a full-time SHL role with Växjö last season, averaging over 10 minutes per game. Standing at 5-11, he is a strong skater with a relentless motor. Those tools alone give Anderberg a clear role as a checking forward, though his offensive upside is questionable. He has shown occasional playmaking flashes, but asking a 17-year-old to try too much in the SHL is rarely a good recipe. Anderberg currently projects as a two-way or aggressive forechecker. His size works against him, but his skating and motor are good enough to carve out a role in the NHL if he can showcase better and more consistent playmaking.

Round 5, 154 overall: Cooper Soller, RW

USHL Rookie of the Year and a Clark Cup champion with Sioux Falls. Foremost an intelligent player, Soller creates offense through clever movement and fast passing. He has a good ability to link defense to offense on the rush through the neutral zone, find cross-ice lanes and move into gaps afterwards for scoring chances. Improving his skating mechanics is a must, and an increase in overall pace will be vital for him to become a more impactful play-driver and reliable offensive threat. His size and play so far don’t show much potential for a usual bottom-six role, so either Soller has to change his game or improve enough to make a second-line role one day.

Round 6, 186 overall: Stepan Shurygin, G

Undrafted in 2025, Shurygin moved to Saginaw and faced a heavy workload, a really heavy one, playing 59 games and regularly being pelted with over 40 shots per night. Standing at 6-4, he plays aggressively, using his ridiculous athleticism to make saves. Shurygin can read releases well, but that’s about where his skills end. His movement and tracking remain poor. He fails to adjust his angles, takes inefficient routes and struggles with rebound control. Goalies are hard to predict, but there is a lot of work ahead for Shurygin.

Round 7, 218 overall: Max Vilén, LHD

A D+2 defenseman, Vilén brings NHL size and the know-how to use it. The skating base is acceptable, but it will need further improvement if Vilén is to lock down a role as a shutdown defenseman. Everything puck-related will need work, from retrievals and breakouts to passing and puck movement on offense. An NHL base of tools is present, but they need to get better for Vilén to have a real shot at the NHL one day.

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Off-Season Moves

Incoming (Remaining years, AAV)

John Carlson – 2 years, $8.50 Million
Tomas Kralovic – 3 years, $1.0075 Million (ELC)
Benjamin Rautiainen – 3 years, $1.0075 Million (ELC)
Ilya Mikheyev – 4 years, $3.850 Million
Jeffrey Viel – 5 years, $2.50 Million
Olivier Rodrigue – 1 year, $850K
Michael Callahan – 1 year, $850K
Mads Sogaard – 1 year, $850K
Jansen Harkins – 1 year, $850K
Dennis Hildeby – 2 years, $841K (remaining)

Outgoing

Darren Raddysh
Nick Paul
Oliver Bjorkstrand
Correy Perry
Declan Carlile
Mitchell Chaffee
Brandon Halverson
Ian Mitchell 

Re-Signed

Maxim Groshev – 2 years, $1.750 million
Nicholas Abruzzese – 1 year, $850K
Scott Sabourin – 1 year, $850K

Comments

Raddysh is the big-name loss after a breakout season where he put up 22 goals and 70 points. Tampa was never going to give him the eight-year deal he eventually got from Toronto, instead turning around and signing free agent Carlson for two years at $8.5 million. Carlson is 36, but he still had 60 points last season and should step straight into Raddysh’s offensive role.

The forward group has seen some turnover, with Paul, Bjorkstrand and Perry all leaving. Viel and Harkins come straight from the Ducks, and both are physical speed guys who chip in with points at decent rates. Harkins has a tendency to get hurt though.

Paul being moved opens a bigger opportunity for Geekie. He only played 14 NHL games last season, but Tampa no longer has that many established forwards blocking him. There should be a real shot for Geekie to win a permanent spot out of camp.

Hildeby is set to be Vasilevskiy’s backup after coming over in the Paul trade.

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In the system

Risers

Jayson Shaugabay

Shaugabay took a good step forward in his second NCAA season, going from 26 points in 36 games to 43 points in 40 games. His playmaking remains the standout trait, finishing with 32 assists while playing on one of college hockey’s most productive lines alongside Max and Zam Plante. I would temper expectations a bit, the talent around him was amazing, and his size, skating and ability to handle physical play remain concerns. Still, producing over a point per game in the NCAA is a meaningful step forward for Shaugabay.

Jakob Pelletier

Pelletier couldn’t have done much more to get attention. He led the entire AHL with 77 points and 28 goals, while also leading all AHL forwards with 31 PPP. He only received five NHL games with Tampa. Pelletier has had several good seasons in the AHL and struggled to stick in the NHL, but once again he’s proven his offensive prowess at the AHL level. With a one-way contract kicking in and some turnover in Tampa’s forward group, he should get another legitimate opportunity to prove his AHL production can translate.

Everett Baldwin

Baldwin jumped from prep hockey to the QMJHL and produced 15 goals and 44 points in 62 games. He led Saint John’s defensemen in scoring, finished second among QMJHL rookie defensemen in points and set a franchise record for goals by a rookie defenseman. His skating and willingness to attack remain the foundation of his game, while his physical play and off-puck processing still need work. Heading to Providence this season, Baldwin has gone from an interesting project to one of the more intriguing defensemen in Tampa’s prospect pool.

Caleb Heil

Heil’s numbers weren’t spectacular during his draft year, and his positioning and technical game left legitimate concerns about whether his athleticism would be enough. He answered some of those questions this season, improving from an .896 save percentage and 2.85 GAA to .905 and 2.34 in 41 USHL games. His season eventually earned him USA Hockey’s Dave Peterson Goaltender of the Year award. Goalies are unpredictable to a fault, and there is still plenty to clean up technically, but Heil now looks considerably more interesting than the typical seventh-round goalie pick as he moves to North Dakota.

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Fallers

It is worth starting the fallers section by noting the simple fact that Tampa has few prospects with high expectations. Most guys are longshots, so finding guys who really “fell” is hard.

Harrison Meneghin

After winning the WHL Championship and playoff MVP with Medicine Hat, Meneghin’s first professional season was a struggle. He posted an .889 save percentage and 3.26 GAA through 14 games in the ECHL, while his lone AHL appearance ended with nine goals allowed. Goaltender development is strange, I wouldn’t write him off after one bad year. Still, going from WHL playoff MVP to struggling for starts in the ECHL is a step backwards, and he’ll need to bounce back to re-establish himself in Tampa’s goalie pipeline.

Jack Harvey

Harvey isn’t here because he had a bad season, but because there wasn’t much progression. After putting up 27 points in 40 games as a sophomore, he dropped to 21 points in 36 games as a junior. His goal total actually improved from 11 to 13, but his assists were cut in half and his overall production went in the wrong direction. Harvey is now 23, and as a 5-foot-10 forward without an obvious standout tool, the offensive production needs to be there. Heading into his senior year at Boston University, this is probably his last real chance to make a strong push for an NHL contract.

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Expected to start in the NHL

Gage Goncalves
Dominic James
Dennis Hildeby
Conor Geekie 

Likely to see NHL action in order of likelihood

Max Crozier
Jakob Pelletier
Dylan Duke
Ethan Gauthier
Simon Lundmark
Lucas Mercuri

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Top 20 Prospects

This section is intended to paint a picture of the Tampa Bay Lightning prospects whose current trajectory projects them making the most positive fantasy impact at the time that they reach the NHL. Arrival date and NHL certainty have been taken into consideration; however, potential upside is the most important factor in determining this list.

1. Conor Geekie
2. Benjamin Rautiainen
3. Jakob Pelletier
4. Jack Pridham
5. Jayson Shaugabay
6. Dylan Duke
7. Ethan Gauthier
8. Everett Baldwin
9. Ethan Czata
10. Sam O’Reilly
11. Dennis Hildeby
12. Oleg Kulebyakin
13. Daniil Pylenkov
14. Hagen Burrows
15. Joe Connor
16. Dominic James
17. Morgan Anderberg
18. Lucas Mercuri
19. Jan Goličič
20. Tomáš Královič

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Final Thoughts

Tampa Bay’s pool is still one of the shallowest, but the team remains a constant contender, and those who do get chances with the team could be placed in amazing situations. Geekie is close to graduating into a full-time NHL role. Baldwin has emerged as an intriguing defense prospect, while Hildeby will be the backup and will get around 30 NHL games while Pelltier is a wildcard still.

The bigger question is how much of this group can arrive while Tampa’s current core is still capable of contending. The Lightning remain firmly in win-now mode, and that makes it difficult for younger players to earn significant roles unless they can contribute immediately. There isn’t an obvious future star waiting behind Geekie, but there are now considerably more prospects with realistic NHL paths than there were a couple of years ago.

Tampa seems to always find a gem or two in the middle rounds of the draft, so it’s always a good idea to check in on how their guys are doing.

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Make sure to check out the Tampa Bay Lightning team page here: https://dobberprospects.com/team/tampa-bay-lightning/ 

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Thanks for reading

Markus R