Tampa Bay Lightning focus on forward position at 2017 NHL Draft

The Tampa Bay Lightning entered the 2017 NHL Entry Draft with some future picks in mind, and the organization came away with several new prospects, including four forwards and the son of a former top NHL defenseman.

The 2017 NHL Entry Draft was held at the United Center in Chicago this weekend, and the addition of one extra team to the mix created some excitement around the league. For the Tampa Bay Lightning, the excitement came after selecting several new prospects, who add to the depth of the organization.

In seven rounds, the Lightning had six picks to choose new prospects or trade away for other picks or players, and with those picks, Tampa Bay selected four forwards and two defensemen. The Lightning chose to not draft a goaltender despite shoring up a bit in depth at that position recently.

With the 14th overall pick, the Tampa Bay Lightning selected defenseman Callan Foote from the Kelowna Rockets of the Western Hockey League. Foote is the son of former NHL defenseman and Quebec Nordiques/Colorado Avalanche legend Adam Foote, whose jersey is retired with the Avs.

Tampa Bay Lightning

In the second round, the Lightning chose forward Alexander Volkov with the 48th overall pick. Volkov is a native of Russia and was ranked No. 27 by NHL Central Scouting for European skaters. Moving into the third round, Tampa Bay selected center Alexei Lipanov (prefers “Alexey”) from the Barrie Colts (starting this season) of the Ontario Hockey League with the 76th overall pick. Lipanov is the No. 13 ranked European skater by NHL Central Scouting.

Tampa Bay had no picks in the fourth and fifth rounds, and with the 169th pick, the Lightning chose their second defenseman of the draft in Nick Perbix. The 19-year-old Elk River, Minnesota native last played with Elk River High School and will start his collegiate career for the 2017-18 season at St. Cloud State University.

Also in the sixth round, the Lightning chose center Cole Guttman with the 180th overall pick. The 18-year-old California native played with the Dubuque Fighting Saints of the United States Hockey League and will wear the captain “C” this coming season. Last year, Guttman scored 54 points in 53 games played, including four points in six playoff games, and he will also begin his college career with St. Cloud State in 2018.

Finally, in the seventh round, Tampa Bay selected center Samuel Walker with the 200th overall pick. Walker, a native of Minnesota, played for Edina High School and the Lincoln Stars of the USHL last season, and he has committed to play for the University of Minnesota starting in 2018.

As you can see, the Tampa Bay Lightning decided to focus on adding more depth at the center position while also addressing needs on defense. Going into the draft, there was some speculation the Lightning might go after a goaltender to add more depth to that position, but this turned out to not be the case.

Tampa Bay continued the theme of drafting Russian players with two in consecutive rounds, and the organization drafted several American players as well. No Canadian players were taken, though Foote has dual citizenship (United States and Canada).

In the coming pages, we will take a closer look at the newest additions to the Tampa Bay Lightning and get a better idea of what each of them bring to the table and how they will fit into the Lightning’s system.