Team Richards wins trophy, Golicic and Heil impress

Team Richards takes 3-on-3 crown as Golicic reflects on Slovenian roots and Heil shines in net.

The 2025 Tampa Bay Lightning development camp came to a close on Friday, ending with the 3-on-3 tournament championship game and a trophy presentation for Team Richards.

Here is one final check-in from camp, recapping this year’s title game and talking to a draft pick from each of the previous two draft classes in defenseman Jan Golicic (2024) and goalie Caleb Heil (2025).

Team Richards claims development camp title

New names will be engraved added to the Tampa Bay Lightning development camp 3-on-3 tournament trophy after Team Richards took the 2025 crown with a 6-3 win in the championship game on Friday at TGH Ice Plex in Brandon.

Team Richards included four forwards in 2025 fourth-round draft picks Benjamin Rautiainen and Aiden Foster, 2023 fourth-round selection Jayson Shaugabay and 2023 seventh-round selection Jack Harvey. The team was rounded out by 2024 draft picks defenseman Jan Golicic and goalie Harrison Meneghin.

Team Richards were up for the trophy against Team Andreychuk in the title game, which included every player who attended camp this week. Forward Marco Mignosa scored the game-opener for Team Richards before Team Andreychuk tied it on a Hagen Burrows goal.

Lucas Mercuri made it 3-1 Team Richards before Kaden Pitre slashed Team Andreychuk’s deficit to 3-2. Shaugabay danced through the offensive zone to extend the lead to 4-2 in the second half, but invitee Maddox Labre drew the score to 4-3 with just under two minutes remaining. A pair of empty-net goals closed the day.

Team Andreychuk included 2025 fifth-round pick Everett Baldwin, Burrows, recently signed forward Connor Kurth, Labre, 2024 sixth-round pick Kaden Pitre, and 2022 forward Klavs Veinbergs, who was a seventh-round pick in 2022.

Golicic and Slovenian hockey

On the same day he put his name on the 3-on-3 trophy with Team Richards, defenseman Jan Golicic spoke on returning to development camp after a busy 2024-25 season.

“The second time is even better,” Golicic said of development camp. “I know the guys and it’s really nice to see them again. I feel more confident, more relaxed.”

Golicic scored four goals and 35 points with 44 penalty minutes while serving as an assistant captain for the Gatineau Olympiques in the QMJHL last season.

At 6-foot-6, the towering 19-year-old leans into his big body to establish his presence on defense. He also feels his two-way game is steady.

“I feel like I'm a two-way defenseman. I like to be tough on defense, make defensive plays like stick on puck and block shots, big hits, and also involve myself in the offense as well. Bring some shots, some nice passes,” Golicic said of how he plays, adding he wants to improve his skating and get stronger.

Golicic will return to Gatineau in 2025-26 as he continues his hunt to become the third player from Slovenia to reach the NHL. Los Angeles Kings center Anze Kopitar has played 1,454 NHL games, while forward Jan Mursak played 46 games between 2010 to 2013

Kopitar reached out to Golicic to congratulate him after he was drafted, and Golicic hopes he can join the list of Slovenian NHLers someday.

Golicic’s 2024-25 season ended with a five-game showing for Team Slovenia at the 2025 IIHF World Championship tournament. He said that experience showed him there is room to grow.

“It’s nice to see young players go out, play in different countries and then all come back to represent Slovenia,” Golicic said. It was a great experience playing against some of the greatest players there is, and you learn a lot of things playing pro hockey like that. I just have to keep progressing.”

Heil shows strong in first Lightning look

Goalie Caleb Heil made multiple head-turning saves on Thursday and Friday during the 3-on-3 tournament that closed the week.

The seventh-round selection in this year’s draft looks forward to developing as a Lightning draft pick. He already knew Lightning goalie scout Jared Waimon before being taken by the team with the 193rd overall pick last weekend.

Heil attended a USA Hockey goalie camp last year in his home state of Minnesota when he met Waimon, who was helping at the camp. Waimon is a “big fan” of the 19-year-old goalie prospect, according to Lightning director of amateur scouting John Rosso.

Heil has enjoyed his first week with the team.

“These first couple days on the ice, it's been huge getting to work with three great goalie coaches,” Heil said Thursday. “They've been proven at every level, obviously with Vasilevskiy here and then the guys that they have in the AHL, I think it's been great. Learned a lot and just want to keep building on that.”

The 6-foot-2, 196-pound goaltender posted a 25-10-4 record with the Madison Capitols of the United States Hockey League (USHL) in 2024-25 along with an .896 save percentage, 2.85 goals-against average and two shutouts.

Heil said his game centers on strong skating and positioning.

"I think I'm a really good skater and can use my edges to get to spots. I think the game well and the options and threats that I need to cover,” Heil said, “and I think I can rely on my edges and my reads to be in the spot to stop the puck. I also think puck play is a big part of my game. I love playing the puck and helping our D break out of the zone.”

Heil enjoys watching Lightning goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy and called him “world class”, adding he appreciates both Vasilevskiy’s talents and efficiency as a goaltender.

The young goalie is set to return to Madison this season and is committed to the University of North Dakota.

"I think just the consistency of having a season where I'm dominant for most of the season, if not all the season,” Heil said of his goals for 2025-26. “Obviously there's gonna be ups and downs, but I think stringing together as many elite games together as I can. But I'm not looking at it that way, just kind of looking at staying in the moment and my process instead of focusing on the results.”