The Tampa Bay Lightning continue to lock up their prospects before the calendar turns to 2017 as they announced the signing of center Brett Howden to a three year, entry level contract. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. This comes on the heels of them inking winger Mathieu Joseph to his entry level pact last week.
Howden was a first round pick of the Lightning (27th overall) in the 2016 NHL Entry Draft. He is in his third full WHL season with Moose Jaw and is off to his best start offensively with 16 goals and 16 assists through 21 games. He was recently one of the final cuts for Team Canada at the World Juniors; despite that, Tampa is more than well represented with no fewer than five prospects on the Canadian roster.
The 18 year old is the brother of Winnipeg farmhand Quinton Howden, a former first rounder himself (25th overall to Florida back in 2010).
Unless Joseph plays in ten or more games with Tampa Bay this season (an unlikely scenario), Howden’s contract will slide a year and begin in the 2017-18 season. As a result, the team will receive a small cap savings on the deal, typically one-third of the signing bonus.