Tampa Bay Lightning Prospect Profile: Adam Erne

Tampa Bay Lightning prospect Adam Erne is one of many young players who will be battling for a spot on the Lightning’s main roster next season.

As all of us here in the Bolts Nation know, the Tampa Bay Lightning is jam-packed with young talent; both on the Lightning’s main roster and in their developmental system. One of the players that will be looking to make a name for themselves this season is young Lightning left wing Adam Erne.

Adam Erne was drafted in the Second Round (33^rd Overall) by the Tampa Bay Lightning in the 2013 NHL Entry Draft. This is the same year the Tampa Bay Lightning drafted rookie left wing Jonathan Drouin. One of the biggest differences in these two players, at the risk of sounding like we are making a pun, if their size.

Erne’s six foot one inch tall, two hundred and eleven pound left wing has the size and speed necessary to not only power his way through the neutral zone and towards the opponent’s net, but to successfully knock his opponent off of the puck. It is this kind of sturdiness that the Lightning has lacked for quite some time now.

With the exception of a short run with the Tampa Bay Lightning’s American Hockey League affiliate, the Syracuse Crunch, Erne has spent most of his time since being drafted with his junior team, the Quebec Remparts of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League.

Last season, Adam Erne had a career-high season with the Quebec Remparts. In the 60 games that Erne played with the Remparts, Erne scored 41 goals and 45 assists for a total of 86 points. While the Remparts may not have had the opportunity to raise the 2015 Memorial Cup high above their heads, Erne did have quite a bit of success in the postseason. In 22 games, Erne was able to net 21 goals and 9 assists for a total of 30 points.

While absolutely nothing is certain at this early stage in the game, we are fairly certain that Erne will be one of the many prospects who will be fighting tooth and nail for their spot on the Tampa Bay Lightning’s main roster this season. There is always the possibility that he will be able to crack the lineup, as he does provide a valuable service for the team, but the likelihood is that he will spent at least one season with the Syracuse Crunch before claiming his seat on the Lightning’s bench.

Adam Erne is one of the prospects in the Tampa Bay Lightning’s abundant prospect pool that has us incredibly excited. Erne has excellent speed on the ice and a natural ability to put the puck in the back of the net. When you through in his size and sheer hard-hitting grit, he makes one heck of a force to be reckoned with.

Of course, there are those moments when his size and tenacity can be a bit of a hinderance. In his first season with the Tampa Bay Lightning organization, Erne was suspended by the National Hockey League for “illegally targeting the head” in the Tampa Bay Lightning’s preseason opener against the St. Louis Blues. Following his suspension, he was almost immediately reassigned to the Remparts for the remainder of the season.

If Erne can learn to better walk the line between hard-hitting and crossing the line, he will definitely be someone the Lightning’s opponents will be keeping their eyes on when it comes their time to take the ice against the Bolts.

As we mentioned before, it is entirely too early in the process to know exactly what the future holds for Adam Erne when the 2015-16 season starts, but the one thing we know for sure is that we are on the edge of our seats with anticipation to see how everything plays out.

What are your impressions of Adam Erne? Do you think he will be able to crack the Lightning’s main roster or do you think he will ultimately spend the season with the Syracuse Crunch perfecting his game? Let us know what you think in the comments below.

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