Lightning’s emphasis on bottom-6 forward depth creates more competition

Now that the free-agency dust has cleared, a breakdown of the Lightning roster for next season doesn’t have many holes to fill. But with the number of forward depth signings the organization made this month, it creates more competition among the bottom-six forward group.

That is the area where the Lightning focused most on upgrading, and they’ve gotten younger and deeper there. They allowed fourth-line center Luke Glendening, an important penalty-killing forward and the team’s top faceoff man on the right side, to walk following his age-35 season. And the role of forward Cam Atkinson, who was also in his age-35 season, wasn’t prominent enough for him to return, either.

The Lightning brought in Pontus Holmberg to slot into Glendening’s role on a two-year, $1.55 million average-annual value (AAV) deal, but Holmberg could play up and down the forward lines. With Holmberg, the Lightning have 12 forwards on one-way NHL deals, not counting Conor Geekie, who is on a two-way entry-level deal and will have to earn his opening-night roster spot again in training camp.

But the Lightning know they’ll need more than 13 forwards to stay afloat over the course of an 82-game season. And combining a pool of forward prospects on the NHL’s doorstep and a group of younger players with significant NHL experience on two-way deals, there be will some added interest in AHL Syracuse this season.

At the top of that list might be center Jack Finley, who made his NHL debut in January when the Lightning needed an emergency forward replacement after Brayden Point was benched for missing a team meeting. Finley, a second-round pick in 2020 who will be 23 years old this season, was specifically mentioned by Lightning general manager Julien BriseBois as an option.

Finley’s 6-foot-6 frame gives the Lightning some size that they need in the bottom six of a forward group short on right-handed shots. Finley had 14 goals and 28 points in 40 games in Syracuse last season, primarily playing in a top-line role. He recently signed a three-year deal that is two way for this season and one way the following two years at the league minimum $775,000; that deal could age well as the league minimum increases under the new collective bargaining agreement.

“We’re going to give him every chance to see where he’s at from a development standpoint,” BriseBois said. “I am fairly confident he’d already be in the NHL if it weren’t for the injuries he suffered over the years, and now he’s at a point where he’s going to be given that opportunity.

“He’s done it really well at the AHL level. He’s been that penalty kill, right-shot faceoff guy who excels in the dot, and we’re going to give him the opportunity to grow into that role at the NHL level.”

Winger Dylan Duke is another prospect high on the Lightning’s radar after he recorded 20 goals and 40 points in his first full AHL season, taking advantage of early injuries in Syracuse to push his way up the Crunch depth chart. Duke plays bigger than his 5-foot-10, 176-pound frame, as he’s quick up and down the ice, hard on the puck and relentless in the net front.

But the forward depth in Syracuse will be notable next season, as the Lightning signed Jakob Pelletier, Nick Abruzzese and Boris Katchouk to two-way contracts. Pelletier’s deal is for three years, and turns into a one-way contract for the second and third years. Syracuse coach Joel Bouchard, who last week was promoted to also be the Crunch’s general manager, has a history with both Pelletier and Katchouk from his involvement with Hockey Canada at the juniors level.

“We’re getting a lot of guys that are getting a second chance,” Bouchard said. “And being a pro hockey player is not easy, and you get to an organization at a young age, and you learn from your mistakes, and unless you’re a very exceptional player, it comes with adversity, and it comes with making mistakes, which is normal, and then finding your groove and becoming a better player.

“And when you get to that second organization, a lot of time, that’s where a player explodes.”

Pelletier spent most of his career with Calgary before he went to the Flyers at the deadline last season, but was never able to meet expectations of a former first-round pick despite having skill and skating attributes that would indicate a valuable NHL player. He did deal with some injuries early on in his career, but to sign a player with Pelletier’s upside at the age of 24 to a max $775,000 cap hit over the next three years could turn out to be a steal.

Katchouk played 38 games with the Lightning in 2021-22 before he was traded to Chicago as part of the Brandon Hagel deal. The Lightning are Katchouk’s fourth organization since the beginning of the 2023-24 season; he most recently played a 21-goal, 49-point season with the Penguins’ AHL affiliate in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton. But he knows the Lightning organization well from his last stint.

“Can we push them and see if there’s one more gear under the hood, and can we make them a little bit better version of themselves?” Bouchard said of this forward group.