What we're watching as Lightning Prospect Camp begins

The Tampa Bay Lightning opened the on-ice portion of Prospect Camp Tuesday at AMALIE Arena - Monday was an off-ice testing day for the players - marking the unofficial beginning of a new season.
The offseason Stanley Cup tour rages on for the back-to-back champions. Three-time Cup winner Pat Maroon gets his day with hockey's holy grail Wednesday in his St. Louis hometown.
But back in Tampa, the foundation to win more Stanley Cups is being laid by the future of the organization.

Fifteen forwards, seven defensemen and two goaltenders will train the next four days before capping the week-long camp with the 2021 Tampa Bay Lightning Prospect Showcase, hosted by the Bolts at AdventHealth Center Ice in Wesley Chapel. Teams of prospects from Florida, Nashville and Carolina will join in a round robin format with all four squads facing off against one another (all games to be played at AdventHealth Center Ice except Tampa Bay's contest against Nashville on Saturday, which will be held at AMALIE Arena in conjunction with Lightning Launch Weekend).
The Lightning camp roster is made up of a handful of high draft picks in Second Rounders Gabriel Fortier (2018), Jack Finley (2020) and Gage Goncalves (2020); a couple of their latest draftees in 2021 Third Rounder Roman Schmidt and Fifth Rounder Cameron MacDonald; a few camp invitees, including local defenseman Avery Winslow; and a plethora of the organization's promising prospects.
Over the next few days, here are the storylines we'll be following closely.

1. Who's the next Ross Colton?
Two years ago at the NHL Prospects Showcase in Nashville, Ross Colton, fresh off his first professional season with the Syracuse Crunch, was a standout for Tampa Bay during the three-game tournament. Colton scored a pair of goals in the Lightning's lone victory, a 7-2 win over the Washington Capitals in the tourney capper, and was a noticeable force every time he took the ice.
Colton would go on to lead the Crunch for assists (31) and rank second for scoring (42 pts.) during the 2019-20 regular season. The next season, he was called up to Tampa Bay and a fixture in the lineup after scoring a goal in his NHL debut February 24 against Carolina. By the end of the season, Colton would score the Stanley Cup-clinching goal in a 1-0 Game 5 victory over the Montreal Canadiens.
So who can be that player to turn heads at this year's prospect camp and showcase and make an impact on the Lightning roster in a couple of years?
There are a few candidates, but I'm looking at 20-year-old center Gage Goncalves.
A Second Round draft pick of the Lightning in 2020, Goncalves tallied an assist in his pro debut with the Crunch last season and skated in 23 games in his third season with the Everett Silvertips of the Western Hockey League, notching 12 goals and 34 points to average 1.48 points per game.
At the time the Lightning drafted Goncalves, Al Murray, Tampa Bay's assistant general manager and director of amateur scouting, compared the youngster to Anthony Cirelli, both in his style of play and his path from overlooked player to budding star. Goncalves wasn't selected in the WHL bantam draft and had to earn a spot on Everett's roster through a tryout. He spent his first season with the Silvertips in a fourth-line role, worked hard in the offseason to improve and add muscle and came back as their number one center in his second season, earning a spot in Hockey Canada's tryout camp for the 2021 IIHF World Junior Championship in the process.
Now, at 6-foot-1 and 171 pounds, Goncalves has the accolades to go along with his work ethic and is one to keep an eye on in camp.
"He had an unreal season the year we drafted him," Lightning assistant general manager, director of player development Stacy Roest said. "Every game we went to, he was the first star or one of the best players. I think he grew, and he got stronger a little bit later maybe than some of his peers. We recognized that and we were happy to draft him."
Goncalves said his experience at Tampa Bay's training camp prior to the 2021 season as well as his stint in Syracuse last season gave him the confidence to take on more of a leadership role in his third year with Everett.
Goncalves finished tied for third in the WHL for scoring.
The Silvertips placed first in the Western Division.
"It was a really good opportunity for me up in Syracuse," Goncalves said. "It was a lot of fun. I got to learn a lot, try and learn from all the older guys how to be a pro every day and all the coaching staff did a really good job. So (in Syracuse) for a month and then back to Everett for a 24-game season. Took a bit more of a leadership role there this past year and it was nice to get that pro experience up in Syracuse and kind of bring it back to Everett. Thought I had a pretty good year, came in first, and couldn't have been happier with the outcome."

2. How is Hugo developing?
The Lightning are set in goal through the 2027-28 season with reigning Conn Smythe Trophy holder and, by everyone in the organization's estimation, the best goalie in the world between the pipes in Andrei Vasilevskiy.
Tampa Bay secured its backup position during the offseason by signing unrestricted free agent Brian Elliott to a one-year contract.
But for the future, Hugo Alnefelt might be the next goalie coming through the pipeline who can make a bid to be a dependable backup to Vasilevskiy. Alnefelt was the Bolts' Third Round selection in the 2019 Draft and followed that up by posting 10-7-0, .905, 2.57 with HV71 of the SHL, Sweden's top men's league, and helped Team Sweden capture bronze at the 2020 U20 World Junior Championship by going 5-1, .924, 2.12.
Alnefelt's numbers took a bit of a dip last season, but the Lightning are still confident enough in his ability to target him for a starting role in Syracuse this season. Following the opening day of free agency this offseason, Lightning general manager Julien BriseBois said Alnefelt would share the load for the Crunch with Maxime Legace, who the Bolts signed to a one-year, two-way contract earlier that day.
Roest said he's excited to see what the Lightning have in their 6-foot-2, 185-pound, left-catching goaltending prospect.
"It's a big season for him," Roest said of Alnefelt. "Last year playing in the men's league and then the World Juniors, we're really excited about having him over and should have a good season wherever he plays. Very good prospect."
Alnefelt will share the goaltending duties during prospect camp and at this weekend's tournament with another Lightning draftee, 2020 Sixth Round selection Amir Miftakhov from Kazan, Russia.

3. Who's the local kid?
Most of Tampa Bay's camp roster hails from noted hockey locales like Quebec, Minnesota, British Columbia, Russia, Nova Scotia, Michigan, etc.
But invitee defenseman Avery Winslow stands out.
He's from Clearwater. He grew up a Lightning fan. He called skating on the AMALIE Arena a dream come true after Tuesday's practice.
"I grew up in this town and have nothing but love for the Lightning," Winslow said. "I've always watched them. (My family) was definitely ecstatic when I got the invite."
Murray said Winslow was a player the organization had on its radar during the 2021 NHL Entry Draft. He was still around as the Seventh Round commenced. There were a number of other players the Lightning liked but didn't have enough selections to take them all - the Bolts had three Seventh Round picks -- so they targeted the leftovers for camp invites.
Winslow was one who accepted.
"You're always looking after the draft to try to fill out some spots for development camp and then prospect tournament, and Avery was a guy that stood out to us the last year and a half in the CHL," Murray said. "Nothing about his game is elite, but everything about his game is good. He works real hard and has a real good attitude. We thought that's the kind of guy we want to bring in here. The fact that he was local adds to the flavor a little bit."
Winslow split time two seasons ago in the Ontario Hockey League between the London Knights and the North Bay Battalion. The OHL cancelled its 2020-21 season due to increasing COVID-19 cases across the province. Winslow spent the time training in south Florida and is expected to take on more of an expanded role with North Bay once the OHL resumes play this season.
"He's going to be, from what we've heard, one of their leaders, potentially an assistant captain," Murray said. "The coaches up there are very high on him. We saw that in the guys we got to watch him play too. Because of the last year and a bit, the way it's been, do we know any of the guys really well? No, but he has some of the attributes that we're looking for, and we're glad to have him here."