VIA TAMPA BAY LIGHTNING COMMUNICATIONS -
TAMPA BAY – The Tampa Bay Lightning selected forward Isaac Howard from the United States National Team Development Program with the 31st overall pick of the NHL Draft tonight in Montreal, Quebec. The Lightning’s 2022 draft is presented by Florida Blue.
Howard, a native of Hudson, Wisconsin, played in 27 USHL games with Team USA during the 2021-22 season, recording 11 goals and 37 points. He led the team for points and assists. Howard recorded six goals and 11 points in six games with Team USA during the IIHF Under-18 Men’s World Championship. He led the team for goals and points as Team USA won the Silver Medal. Howard is committed to the University of Minnesota-Duluth for the 2022-23 season.
Howard, becomes Tampa Bay’s first pick in Round 1 since 2019 when the Bolts selected forward Nolan Foote from Kelowna of the WHL at 27th overall. He joins Steven Stamkos, Victor Hedman, Andrei Vasilevskiy and Cal Foote as current Bolts players who were selected by the team in Round 1.
Photo: Getty Images
VIA TAMPA BAY LIGHTNING COMMUNICATIONS -
TAMPA BAY – The Tampa Bay Lightning made six selections during Day 2 of the 2022 NHL Draft today in Montreal, Quebec. The Lightning’s 2022 draft is presented by Florida Blue.
Tampa Bay traded the 103rd and 169th overall picks to the Los Angeles Kings in exchange for the 86th overall selection to pick forward Lucas Edmonds from the Kingston Frontenacs of the OHL. Born in North Bay, Ontario but also a Swedish national, he ranked third in the OHL for scoring with 34 goals and 113 points in 68 games played. Edmonds also led the league for assists with 79. Prior to joining Kingston for 2021-22, he spent several seasons in Sweden, representing the county in multiple international competitions.
With the 160th overall selection in the fifth round the Lightning selected goaltender Nick Malik from KooKoo of the Finnish Liiga. He appeared in 34 games and posted a 1.97 goals-against average and a .922 save percentage with a 15-9-9 record. Malik also skated in 14 playoff games with a 7-7 record to go along with a 2.14 goals-against average and a .926 save percentage. The son of former Lightning defenseman Marek Malik, he has represented Czechia internationally. The 6-foot-2, 174-pound netminder played in the IIHF World Junior Championship in two consecutive years. In the 2021 World Juniors, Malik appeared in four games and recorded a 2.90 GAA paired with an .890 save percentage.
The Lightning used their 6th-round pick, 192nd overall, to take forward Connor Kurth from the Dubuque Fighting Saints of the USHL. He skated in 62 games last season, recording 35 goals and 81 points. Kurth ranked fifth in the USHL for points and was tied for fifth in goals. The Elk River, Minnesota native played in two playoff games in 2022 and recorded two goals and four points. Kurth is committed to the University of Minnesota for the 2022-23 season.
With their first of two picks the in the seventh round, 223rd overall, Tampa Bay selected defenseman Dyllan Gill from Rouyn-Noranda of the QMJHL. He played in 66 games last season, recording six goals and 21 points and 24 penalty minutes. Gill also played in three postseason games and registered one assist. He has played in 105 contests with Rouyn-Noranda over the course of the previous two seasons.
At 224th overall in the seventh round the Bolts took Latvian forward Klavs Veinbergs from Riga of the Russian junior league. He played in 47 games with Riga last season, recording 16 goals and 24 points. He also represented Latvia in the IIHF World Championships and skated in three games.
Lightning Selections at 2022 NHL Draft
Round 1 – 31 overall F Isaac Howard USNTDP (USHL)
Round 3 – 86 overall (from Los Angeles) F Lucas Edmonds Kingston (OHL)
Round 5 – 160 overall G Nick Malik KooKoo (Finland)
Round 6 – 192 overall F Connor Kurth Dubuque (USHL)
Round 7 – 223 overall (from NY Rangers) D Dyllan Gill Rouyn-Noranda (QMJHL)
Round 7 – 224 overall F Klavs Veinbergs Riga 2 (Russia Jr.)
ALL PHOTOS COURTESY GETTY IMAGES