TAMPA BAY -The Tampa Bay Lightning have signed forward Niko Huuhtanen to a three-year, entry-level contract today, vice president and general manager Julien BriseBois announced.
Huuhtanen, 6-foot-2, 204 pounds, recently joined the Lightning’s top affiliate, the Syracuse Crunch, in the Calder Cup Playoffs, appearing in two games. Prior to coming back to North America, Huuhtanen spent the previous two seasons with Jukurit of Liiga, the top league in his native Finland, recording 36 goals and 76 points in 100 games.
The Espoo, Finland native represented his native country in the 2023 IIHF World Junior Championship, where he scored two goals and recorded three points in five games. He ranked tied for third on the team for points. Huuhtanen also played for Finland at the World U18 Championship, registering two goals and five points in seven contests.
Huuhtanen, who played junior hockey for the Everett Silvertips of the Western Hockey League, was drafted by Tampa Bay in the seventh round, 224th overall, of the 2021 NHL Draft.
