tbl-2026 Tampa Bay Lightning Top 20 Under 25: #18 Gabriel Szturc

Summary

Gabriel Szturc makes the final list for the third time in his Tampa Bay Lightning career. Not bad for a kid that wasn’t drafted. Name Gabriel Szturc Position Forward Age (as of October 1, 2026) 23 Height/Weight 5’11, 194 lbs. Expected 2026-27 Team Syracuse Crunch Draft – Year, Round Undrafted Previous Rankings 19th ( 2025 ), 21st ( 2024 ) JustinG. Ranking Not Ranked Final Rank 18 Stats: Our Thoughts: The progression of Gabriel Szturc’s career has been an interesting one. He was passed over each and every year of his draft eligibility. He didn’t let that deter his performance as he put up 24 and 33 goals respectively in his final two seasons in the WHL with the Kelowna Rockets. He accepted an invite to the Lightning’s development camp and turned that into a contract by the spring of 2024. Szturc made his professional debut in the playoffs with Syracuse, and then joined the Crunch full time for the 2024-25 season. As a rookie he put up 19 points (7 goals, 12 assists) in 54 games. It was a strong campaign and there were hopes that he could build on that in 2025-26. In the end, it was an okay year as he matched his offensive output with 19 points (9 goals, 10 assists) in 60 games. In the Crunch’s playoff series against Cleveland, Szturc added a goal in four games. While the numbers were the same, there were some improvements in his game. His skating was sharper, and he found a way to help the team in all three aspects (he had three power play goals and one short-handed tally). The big question for Szturc will be if he can continue to improve enough to maintain his ice time with the Crunch, or if other prospects will move past him on the depth chart. Entering the final season of his entry-level deal, his level of play has to keep going up in order for his journey to the NHL to continue. There isn’t a lot that stands out about his game, no defining trait to build around, but he does a lot of things well. His skating is solid, and his edge work has improved. Like a lot of players in the system, he likes to forecheck and doesn’t mind going into the boards to get the puck. Offensively, his instincts are okay and his shot gets off a little quicker than goaltenders expect. It would be surprising to see him get to the 15-17 goal mark in the AHL if he can maintain his playing time. Szturc missed about a month of the season last year, and when he returned at the end of March he scored five of his nine goals in the final thirteen games of the season adding three assists. That’s the type of production that will move him up in the rotation even as the next crop of forwards join the Crunch. Your Thoughts: No direct mentions. His highest ranking was 10th, and there was a pretty good spread with his highest number of spots at 16. Highlight Videos: A comprehensive list of the fastest things in the universe this week: 1. Gabby's one-timer 2. Artemis II re-entry speed pic.twitter.com/LFzQS4etaB — Syracuse Crunch (@SyracuseCrunch) April 12, 2026 There is nothing fancy about this play. Szturc put himself in a shooting position and ripped the one-timer past the goaltender. It was a nice fluid shot, but what was really nice was how he tracked the play. He crashed to the net, but drifted back into the soft, open area instead of just standing there. TELL 'EM, GABBY pic.twitter.com/dDy687NgZt — Syracuse Crunch (@SyracuseCrunch) March 22, 2026 Here is an example of how his skating has improved. He made a couple of nice cuts along the boards to free himself of the defender and then cut inside to get to the front of the net in order to get the shot off. Gabby on the power play! pic.twitter.com/mLGVfgP116 — Syracuse Crunch (@SyracuseCrunch) March 22, 2026 Szturc has the goal-scorer’s instinct of getting to the right place at the right time after fighting for the puck along the boards. He also showed a nice little bit of hand-eye coordination to bat this puck into the net off of the bouncing feed. 👊 Ethan Gauthier (#79) taps it home in the slot for his 10th goal of the AHL season! Gabriel Szturc (#95) and Reece Newkirk (#18) pick up the assists. #GoBolts pic.twitter.com/GTpiBrDxt2 — Future Bolts (@FutureBolts_) March 23, 2026 His game isn’t flashy, but he is decisive with the puck. This isn’t a fancy pass, but it doesn’t work if Szturc doesn’t know what he’s going to do with it before it’s on his stick. The Top 20 20 – Aiden Foster 19 – Morgan Anderberg