Confirmed with Link: Lightning sign Odeen Tufto to ELC

[Point21]

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[Vasilevskiy]

who

 

[LightningStrikes]

What a name! Tough toe!

 

[LightningStrikes]

24-year old 5’7 American center. 8 goals and 47 points in 29 games and captain for Quinnipiac University in the NCAA.

Odeen Tufto has signed a one-year entry-level contract with the Lightning for the 2021-22 season and will report to the Syracuse Crunch on an amateur tryout for the rest of this season.

Tufto, 24, was one of the top undrafted college free agents after an incredible senior season that saw him score 47 points in just 29 games. That mark was good enough to make him a finalist for the Hobey Baker Award, but it isn’t all that much different than his other three seasons for Quinnipiac University.

While he doesn’t project the same as someone like Cole Caufield, the only NCAA player to score more points than him this season, Tufto is a sneaky depth pickup for an organization that has never been afraid of adding undersized forward talent.

Tampa Bay Lightning Sign Odeen Tufto

 

[TheDaysOf 04]

He's a finalist for the Hobey Baker Award



Tufto Signs One-Year Deal with NHL's Tampa Bay Lightning - Quinnipiac University Athletics

Tufto will report to the Lightning's AHL affiliate, Syracuse Crunch, where he will play with former Bobcat captain Chase Priskie '19.

Tufto was the 2020-21 ECAC Hockey Player of the Year and an All-ECAC Hockey First Team pick, as well as an All-College Hockey News Second Team selection. Tufto was also a Hobey Baker Award Top 10 Finalist and a finalist for the Senior CLASS Award.

Tufto scored eight goals, led the nation with 39 assists and was second nationally with 47 points in one of the best seasons in program history. Tufto also led the nation with1.34 assists per game and 20 power-play assists, was second with 1.62 points per game and 22 power-play points while his 379 faceoff wins are third and .624 faceoff percentage is fourth.

- He was also a development camp invite for Detroit in 2019.

 

[TheDaysOf 04]

 

[Major4Boarding]

Think TJ's skillset (once was) with Gourde's tenacity but stops a bit short of the DeBrincat scale (5'7" players). I can see him busting out once he assimilates to the AHL grind and speed. I believe we'll all like this one overall. It'll take some time, and some minor groans from the fanbase. I honestly thought about this guy being signed but pushed it way down the pile... hoping some of our Jr Collegiate prospects would be asked to forego their Senior years. I prefer guys staying thru their Senior years but the depth-well is drying up fast in this organization and a fresh infusion is kinda needed.

 

[TheDaysOf 04]

Here's an older article with a cool tie in to former 5'9" Lightning prospect and Quinnipiac captain Matthew Peca

"I knew he was going to be a really good player," Pecknold said. "A lot of his success has come from the fact that he has been given a lot of opportunity. Every coach is different and some make their freshmen wait to get those opportunities, whereas I feel the best kids are going to get those chances. We always have one or two freshmen make an impact because we give them the opportunity."

Tufto's size — 5-foot-7 — would be a deterrent in many programs, but for Pecknold this is another way he can build his program.

"We have had a lot of those good, smaller guys over the years," said Pecknold. "Size doesn't matter for us because 'compete' and 'IQ' are much more important. He has a really high offensive IQ, he knows how to create time and space for himself and he knows how to hit gaps. He also has a really high skill set."

Pecknold has had many diminutive high-end players — like Travis St. Denis, Sam Anas, and Connor and Kellen Jones — all make significant contributions. The biggest example is Matthew Peca, who is now finding success with the Tampa Bay Lightning.

"I think it is the way we play," Pecknold said. "It might be the pace; we like to play fast. A little bit of it is I have had so much success with smaller players that I don't stereotype them coming in and I just let them play. To me, I could care less about size. It's great to have players that are big, have IQ and can skate, but if they can't think the game they are just wasted space."

Said Tufto, "Size has always been the story of my career. It is something that sometimes gets labeled on me, but you have to play bigger than you are. It gives me a chip on my shoulders. Especially at Quinnipiac and even in the pros, small guys are thriving."

"When I first visited the school it was the year they went to the Frozen Four in Tampa," Tufto said. "They had a lot of smaller guys and seeing how those guys were able to develop was definitely eye-opening. I saw those guys thriving in the system and I really liked the campus, so it all came together well."

 

[LTIR Trickery]

Creative and smart, not really sure how to project him as far as the NHL though.

 

[Stammertime91]

He must have signed with us hoping it wouldn't be tufto break into the lineup. He might be thinking Odeen, i made the wrong choice during training camp.

 

[Felonious Python]

 

[Felonious Python]

Creative and smart, not really sure how to project him as far as the NHL though.

Looking at his stats in context with his conference, he seems safely a (good) AHL player, but beyond that...

 

[FinnLightning26]

We've had a lot of success with smaller forwards during the years so why not take a flyer with him.

 

[TheDaysOf 04]