Jonathan Drouin wasn’t the only player from the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL) that was selected by the Tampa Bay Lightning.
Early in the second round the Lightning organization announced that the 33rd overall selection was power forward Adam Erne from the Quebec Remparts. The 6’1″, 201 lb. left winger, who was projected as a mid-to-late first round pick, fell into the lap of the Lightning organization.
Erne, a native of North Brandford, Connecticut, began his junior career as a 15-year old with the Indiana Ice of the United States Hockey League (USHL) during the 2010-11 season. Erne scored ten goals and assisted on eight others for 18 points and earned 49 penalty minutes.
From there, he moved on to the “Q” where he was originally drafted by the Halifax Mooseheads, but was traded to the Remparts during the summer of 2011 for multiple draft picks.
Under the tutelage of then-Remparts head coach and general manager Patrick Roy, Erne adapted well to the league where he accumulated 28 goals, 27 assists and 32 penalty minutes in 64 games. With his first season in the QMJHL in the books, Erne had plenty to build on for his draft year.
In his second year with the Remparts, Erne improved his numbers by recording 72 points (28 goals, 44 assists) and raised his number of penalty minutes to 67 in 68 games.
One of the highlights for the Remparts forward was that he took part in the CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game this past January where he scored a goal for Team Orr in a 3-0 win vs. Team Cherry.
Several days later, Erne ran into a speed bump following an embarrassing 11-2 loss to the Mooseheads. He and a teammate were supposed to have been suspended for the Remparts’ next game, but Coach Roy changed his mind and inserted them back into the lineup.
The word on Erne is that he plays the power forward game with a “bull in a china shop” mentality. Erne isn’t the flashiest player on the ice, but he compensates with speed and hockey smarts. He is at his most dangerous where he is in front of the net. When on his game, he is difficult to stop and hard to knock off the puck.
One of the things that Erne has to work on in order to make it in the NHL is 
consistency. Some scouts observe that he doesn’t bring his best on a game-in and game-out basis. He also needs to become a better conditioned athlete.
Erne will spend at least one more year in the “Q”, before he embarks on a pro career, which probably means some seasoning in Syracuse. He is projected as a two-way forward who would benefit playing on the Lightning’s second line and could also get extra minutes on the power play.
Lightning fans, what do you think? First, you got an elite talent in Jonathan Drouin and then the front office followed that up with a power forward with first round talent in the second round. The forum is yours…
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