Only a few days removed from the 2026 NHL Draft, the future of Tampa Bay Lightning hockey is already carving up the ice at team facilities.
The 2026 Lightning Development Camp opened on Monday with player testing and skating work, the opening of a weeklong get-together for Bolts prospects with the organization.
Let’s dive into this year’s camp, what it’s all about and chat with some of those at the rink on Monday—one new in prospect Jack Pridham as well as some familiar ones in Lightning alumni Mike McKenna and Pat Maroon.
Who, what, when, where?
This year’s development camp features a mix of players from multiple draft classes as well as invitees.
The 2026 Development Camp roster is comprised of 16 forwards, seven defensemen and four goalies.
Nineteen of the 27 players at this year’s camp were drafted by the organization. Forwards Jack Pridham and Sam O’Reilly were acquired via separate trades with the Edmonton Oilers, and the final six players are attending as invitees.
Much of the 2026 NHL Draft class is taking part in the camp, including the team’s second-round pick in forward Oleg Kulebiakin, third-round defenseman Tomas Kralovic as well as fifth-round forwards Morgan Anderberg and Cooper Soller as well as seventh-round pick Max Vilen, a defenseman who spent 2025-26 in the QMJHL. The only 2026 draftee not attending is goaltender Stepan Shurygin, the club’s sixth-round pick.
Six selections from the 2025 Draft Class are participating. Skaters Ethan Czata, Aiden Foster, Everett Baldwin, Marco Mignosa and Grant Spada join goalie Caleb Heil.
This week includes daily on-ice and off-ice sessions for the players as they learn more about the organization and get an inside look at professional hockey. It concludes this Thursday and Friday with a 3-on-3 tournament.
“Today they get to celebrate the work they've put in, and they get to celebrate with their families. These are incredible moments,” Lightning General Manager and Vice President of Hockey Operations Julien BriseBois said after the draft. “We get to see them on TV, and they're incredibly emotional, and that's a celebration of the path they've come. And now, when we get our hands on them this week and they get exposed to professional hockey for the first time, they get an idea of the work still left to be done in order for them to achieve their goal of playing in the NHL someday.
“I would think that's the first thing, just to realize the standard level of execution, fitness level, competition, commitment, work ethic that's required for them to get to where ultimately they're hoping to be, which is a Tampa Bay Lightning NHL player.”
This week’s full schedule can be seen here. On-ice sessions and the 3-on-3 tournament are open to the public.
Pridham gets first Lightning look
The Lightning opened June by trading for Jack Pridham on the first day of the month, and the 20-year-old forward is in the midst of his first experience with the organization at this week’s camp. He said he “loved” his first impression of Tampa.
“It’s obviously a great organization. The history and results speak for themself, so I’m very excited to get going this week,” Pridham said Monday.
Pridham was originally a third-round pick by the Chicago Blackhawks in 2024 and is fresh off an OHL and Memorial Cup championship season for the Kitchener Rangers alongside fellow Lightning prospect Sam O’Reilly.
He described himself as an all-around player.
“I’m a 200-foot player with good speed, good hockey sense and offensive ability.”
His game backs it up, too—the right-handed winger scored 46 goals and 90 points in 65 OHL regular season games and went on to lead the Rangers in Memorial Cup scoring behind five goals and nine points across four games.
“Throughout the whole season playing in all situations, the Memorial Cup was obviously the highest stake,” he said. “It was a chance to win it all, and earning the trust of my coaches and teammates to put me on the ice in all situations just let me play my game, and we ultimately came out on top.”
Pridham is headed to play for the University of Denver for the 2026-27 season. Denver finished this past season with a 29-11-3 record and capped the year with a national championship.
“They’ve obviously got a great team down there and a great coaching staff,” he said, “so I’ll just be working with them on all areas of the game to improve and be the best I can be.”
Mike McKenna, Pat Maroon serve as volunteer coaches
Not even a 14-year professional hockey career—and a few added years around the game via broadcasting—is enough for Mike McKenna.
The retired NHL goaltender is helping out this week as a volunteer coach for Tampa Bay. McKenna started 14 games for Tampa Bay during the 2008-09 season and spent time with the Syracuse Crunch during the 2016-17 campaign.
Now, he’s back.
“It seemed like it could be a lot of fun and also a way to reconnect a little bit with pro hockey and the NHL. For the last two years it’s been out of my life, and I thought it’d be a blast. Goalies are goalies,” he said with a laugh. “We always need help.”
McKenna currently works as a small business owner in St. Louis and still “feels the itch” to work in hockey. He currently stays connected to the sport by coaching his daughters.
“If you get too far from something or too removed, you lose touch not just with the people, but especially a position like goaltender that's so specific, you can get passed by quickly,” he said. “I’m just still so passionate about this game and sport. Even just coming here will help me be a better youth hockey coach.”
With four young goalies attending this week’s camp, including a pair of Lightning draft picks, McKenna feels he can provide valuable insight after seeing the game through multiple lenses.
“My career really, a lot of it was just resiliency and details. I wasn't a great athlete, I wasn't anybody's prospect, and I had to grind my way through a career. So I'm hopeful that some of those conversations with them can be helpful.” McKenna said. “You don't want to ever force it on anybody, but if they want to talk about it, or if they want to explore things that are equipment-related—I loved gear—those are the things that, without being overbearing, you can help somebody a lot because those details aren't there for everybody. Sometimes you may not know something, maybe you haven't ever discussed it before. I love discovering things in real time with other people.”
Former Lightning forward Pat Maroon is also serving as a volunteer coach this week. Maroon, who works for the Lightning post-retirement, immediately accepted the offer to help when BriseBois extended the opportunity.
“It was a great opportunity for me to come learn from other coaches and player development coaches and skills coaches that are part of the organization, because one day you never know,” Maroon said. “I want to try to maybe one day get back into hockey, and this is a great opportunity for me to step foot into this and learn the process of it and an opportunity to do some video, some talking. I’m really looking forward to this week, and I'm excited to be a part of it.”
What earns a player an invite?
Even if they don’t get selected during their turn at the NHL Draft, young players don’t often surrender their NHL dreams. Opportunity is still there, sometimes in the form of an invitation to a club’s development camp.
Seven players with no affiliation to the Lightning were invited to 2026 Development Camp. Tampa Bay’s hockey operations department looks for potential when compiling their list of invitations.
So, how does a player receive an invite?
When Lightning draft picks can’t attend camp, the team invites players of interest. Lightning Director of Player Development JP Cote said it’s a process, but the organization knows each attendee before extending an invite. Scout Brian Putnam often finds the players with the help of his fellow scouts and the Lightning development crew.
Those invitations can also help the organization in the future if a player continues to develop and opts to turn pro, particularly in the NCAA realm.
“We think they could maybe become part of this organization in the future, and they see how we operate,” Cote said. “And those free agents in college, eventually there might be some interest from other teams left and right. And if he saw first how we do things, what the culture is here in Tampa, then that’s a plus for us.”
On the flip side, the organization can also get a look at younger players in the CHL who might be options in future drafts.
Forward Carlin Dezainde, 21, is attending camp after a 2025-26 season with the University of Connecticut, scoring 16 points in 37 games. Jacob Mathieu is another forward invited to camp as a 22-year-old who scored 30 points in 32 games with Northeastern University last season.
Anthony Thomas-Maroon, Pat Maroon’s son, is attending camp following a 2025-26 season with the Muskegon Lumberjacks of the USHL. He wrapped up his 17-year-old season with 19 points and 78 penalty minutes in 59 games.
Elliot Arnett is the lone defensive invitee after playing for the Owen Sound Attack in the OHL. Arnett, 18, posted 16 points and 84 penalty minutes across 65 games.
Goalie invite Danick Leroux, 20, played NCAA hockey last season for Holy Cross, going 12-9-1 with a .906 save percentage. Fellow netminder Gavin Betts, 18, went 21-18-2 with a .905 save percentage for Kingston in the OHL.
Some of the invitees will also likely play in the team’s rookie tournament before the season.
