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Lightning prospects mantra: You never know when NHL chance will appear

 
Lightning prospect Mikhail Sergachev skates during the Lightning Development Camp Wednesday at the Ice Sports Forum in Brandon. [DOUGLAS R. CLIFFORD   |   Times]
Lightning prospect Mikhail Sergachev skates during the Lightning Development Camp Wednesday at the Ice Sports Forum in Brandon. [DOUGLAS R. CLIFFORD | Times]
Published June 29, 2017

BRANDON — Brett Howden said he watched closely last season as former junior teammate Brayden Point made an remarkable rise to a Lightning regular in his first year pro.

The year before, Howden, 19, Tampa Bay's first-round draft pick in 2016, sat next to Point in the dressing room of their junior team, Moose Jaw. Now Howden was watching on his laptop as Point was scoring shootout goals in the NHL.

"It was pretty crazy," Howden said.

Howden, a center who succeeded Point as Moose Jaw captain, hopes to follow his lead and be the next long shot to crack the Lightning lineup. Though Howden is likely returning to the Warriors for his final junior season, the path Point took two years ago, he's one of several prospects who are saying:

You never know.

"Absolutely," Howden said. "That's my biggest goal: to make a big impression and try to make it hard on them to send me away. Obviously, you never know what's going to happen. But just from seeing last year what 'Pointer' did, I don't think anyone else expected him to be there. But he worked hard, did what he did best, and it worked out in the end."

The Lightning has added depth at forward this week, re-signing Yanni Gourde, Cory Conacher and Gabriel Dumont to two-year deals. But general manager Steve Yzerman said that doesn't preclude him from adding another forward, either from outside or his system.

Performance and health play roles — Point seized a spot with Ryan Callahan hurt last fall — but prospects like Howden and Anthony Cirelli hope to turn heads, starting with this week's development camp. Taylor Raddysh and Mitchell Stephens should be ones to watch, too.

"If any of them is going to make us a better team in Tampa and are ready to play and play significant minutes, they'll be given that opportunity," Yzerman said. "Right now, for the guys turning pro, our expectation is they will play in (AHL) Syracuse next year. But if anyone comes in and performs well and deserves a spot on the team, we'll give them a chance."

It already has been one heck of a year for Cirelli, who went from playing for Canada at the World Junior Championships to helping lead Erie to the junior Canadian League's Memorial Cup final. Then Cirelli joined Syracuse, making his pro debut in the Calder Cup final against Grand Rapids.

"He was great. I was so impressed with his play," Syracuse coach Benoit Groulx said. "He played center, played wing, got some scoring chances. He was reliable defensively and never panicked with the puck. It's rare to see a young player coming from juniors stepping in a finals series like that and having the poise like he has. He's going to be a good player in this organization, there's no doubt about it."

Cirelli, a 2015 third-round draft pick, said this was a huge year for him maturing as a player but he's not where he wants to be. "I want to get stronger," he said. "Playing up there is playing with men."

Howden also got his first taste of pro hockey late last season for Syracuse. He racked up six points in eight games, appearing in three playoff games. Groulx liked how Howden, a center, could play all three forward positions and wasn't afraid to make plays.

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"He's hard working, honest, he plays the game the right way," said Stacy Roest, Lightning director of player development. "He plays 200 feet, doesn't cheat the game. Six points in eight games, that's not easy as a pro. For Brett to go in there at a young age of 18 is very impressive."

Howden, at 6 feet 3 and 191 pounds, said he needs to get stronger, too. But after working with skating coach Barb Underhill, the progression in his skating has been "incredible," he said. Sounds a lot like Point, who credits his improvement in skating with Underhill for giving him a chance to make the Lightning, racking up 40 points in 68 NHL games last season.

Moose Jaw coach Tim Hunter is expecting to have Howden back, saying the forward would benefit from another year of seasoning in junior.

"You never know," Hunter said. "Like I told (Point), you don't go to the team to try to play in Syracuse, you go to camp to play in Tampa. And you never know how injuries or salary cap impact things, or how much you improve over the summer. Things change."