Another season of Syracuse Crunch and Tampa Bay Lightning prospect hockey kicks off tonight with the Crunch looking to improve upon their second-place division finish and first-round exit from the playoffs last season.
Before the puck drops though, here are our five biggest questions for the team entering this season.
How much of Fortier and Koepke will we see in Syracuse?
Both Gabriel Fortier and Cole Koepke earned spots on the Tampa Bay Lightning’s roster to start the NHL season following an improved sophomore campaign for Fortier and an impressive rookie showing for Koepke in 2022. Now the question stands, how much of them will we see in Syracuse this season?
Barring any string of bad performances, they should both stay with the NHL club at least until Anthony Cirelli returns from injury. Afterwards, anything from both being sent down to Syracuse for playing time to one staying as the thirteenth forward – on a fully healthy roster – could be in the cards. However, this being the last season of both players’ entry-level contracts, it would be advantageous to have them play as much as possible in high-minute roles in the minors while they are waiver exempt.
What impact will Thompson have for the Crunch?
Jack Thompson enters his rookie season with the Crunch as the most intriguing defensive prospect the Lightning have had since Cal Foote. Since being drafted in the third-round of the 2020 draft, Thompson has only impressed. He recorded an assist on debut to end the Crunch’s 2020 season, scored at nearly a point-per-game pace in the OHL last season, and won gold at the 2022 WJC with Canada.
A high-minute role will not come easy for Thompson this season as both veteran Darren Raddysh and prospect Nick Perbix play right-side defense with him. At the very least though, Thompson should see ample opportunities to run the power play as his scoring ability will likely prove to be too hard to ignore in man-advantage situations.
Can the Crunch overcome the loss of key veterans?
Gone from the Crunch this season are three veteran forwards who helped secure the team’s spot in last season’s playoffs. Those three being: Charles Hudon, Anthony Richard, and Remi Elie. Between the three, there is 57 goals scored gone from last season. With no new notable veteran forwards signed in the offseason, it may take a while for them team to establish a new core of players to rely upon to put points on the board.
Who steps into the vacated top forward roles?
With multiple veteran forwards gone and Fortier and Koepke in the NHL, there will be plenty of opportunities for young prospect forwards to earn a large role. Looking at a hypothetical top-six forward group, the only names that stand out as a lock at this point are Alex Barre-Boulet, Gabriel Dumont, Gemel Smith, and Simon Ryfors.
Outside of those four, the only natural option to take a step forward from last season is Gage Goncalves who struggled and exceled at times on his way to 32 points in his rookie season. Behind Goncalves a surplus of AHL rookies will be vie for playing time. That group includes Bennett MacArthur, Ilya Usau, Jack Finley, Jaydon Dureau, and Lucas Edmonds.
There will not be a total reliance on upon rookies though as veterans such as Daniel Walcott and P.C. Labrie will be present to fill in the gaps as needed, but neither are likely to be a top scorer if the Crunch are to be a playoff caliber team this season.
Is Barre-Boulet still an NHL prospect?
After two seasons of unconvincing results between two teams in the NHL, Alex Barre-Boulet found himself passed over in favor of Fortier and Koepke when it came down to roster cuts for the Lightning this preseason. With that, it feels like this could be an unofficial transition season that sees Barre-Boulet transition from NHL prospect into a de facto AHL veteran.
Even after playing perhaps the best hockey of his career with the Crunch last season, the 25-year-old finds himself on the outside looking in as he tries to realize the goal of becoming a full-time NHL player. But the question now stands as what more can he do to prove himself as he already has a highly successful AHL career supporting him. Regardless of the exact answer, Barre-Boulet will have no shortage of opportunities to play a number of roles as the aforementioned loss of veteran forwards, and Fortier and Koepke in Tampa, to begin the season will keep him busy in all game situations.