4:12 p.m.: Roelens’ ELC carries a cap hit of $870K, per PuckPedia. In all three seasons, the deal carries a $775K salary, a $95K signing bonus, up to $80K in games played bonuses, and a minors salary of $82.5K.
12:01 p.m.: Free agent center prospect Milo Roelens signed a three-year, entry-level contract with the Lightning on Friday, per a team release. The agreement, for which terms were not released, will begin next season and make Roelens an RFA in 2027.
Roelens, 21, is in his final season of junior hockey and has spent the last four seasons in the QMJHL. The massive 6-foot-6, 207-lb pivot was traded from the Sherbrooke Phoenix to the Acadie-Bathurst Titan last summer, a move that’s allowed him to break out for 25 goals, 37 assists, and 62 points with 90 PIMs in 56 games this year.
Crossing over the point-per-game threshold for the first time in his major junior career, Roelens now has his professional home secured for the next three seasons. The Canadian-Belgian dual national was born in Ste-Pétronille, Québec, and received some outside consideration for selection in last year’s NHL Entry Draft but was ultimately passed over.
A decent two-way pivot, Roelens can also play left wing. Like many young UFAs who will sign deals over the coming days, his NHL prospects are limited given his delayed offensive breakout at the junior level, but he’s done well enough in junior play this year to likely secure a spot with Tampa’s primary affiliate, the AHL’s Syracuse Crunch, next season. If he doesn’t crack their roster out of camp, he’ll be demoted to the second-tier ECHL with the Orlando Solar Bears.
Roelens’ +17 rating leads Acadie-Bathurst this season, as do his 25 goals. His 62 points are second on the team behind former Hurricanes prospect Robert Orr, another potential free-agent pickup for teams in the coming days or over the summer.
Roelens is the second unsigned prospect to ink an entry-level deal today, joining former Sharks draft pick Max McCue. McCue inked a three-year contract with the Blue Jackets to open this year’s free-agent signing period for UFA prospects coming out of junior hockey.