Grant Spada and Ethan Czata\u2019s friendship was instant.<\/p>\n
When the fellow Tampa Bay Lightning 2025 draft picks and Ontario Hockey League players first met at last summer\u2019s development camp, something clicked.\u00a0<\/p>\n
First they were opponents. Then they became friends. Now, they\u2019re teammates.<\/p>\n
Their bond is growing further this season following a June OHL trade that saw the 19-year-old Czata dealt to the Guelph Storm. After serving as captain of the Niagara IceDogs, Czata will share the Storm locker room with Spada.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe met last year at Dev Camp, and we just had a good spark from there,\u201d Spada said.<\/p>\n
The timing of the deal lines up at a key time for the franchise\u2014Guelph will host the 2027 Memorial Cup, giving the Bolts prospects a chance to win the crown jewel of junior hockey together.<\/p>\n
\u201cI’m pumped,\u201d Spada said of the Memorial Cup. \u201cCzata is here to work with me through that, and we have a good team, so we’re all excited. It’s gonna be a great year. What’s better than doing it in your own barn, right?\u201d<\/p>\n
His friend and new teammate shares the feeling.<\/p>\n
\u201cTo be able to go to the Mem Cup is a dream in junior hockey,\u201d Czata said. \u201cSome players don\u2019t get the chance to go do it\u2026It’s probably my last year in junior, so just to get a chance to play the longest season I can and try to win is something that I\u2019m very grateful for.\u201d<\/p>\n
Guelph received an automatic bid to the Memorial Cup by hosting the tournament, one year after the organization reached the 2026 OHL Playoffs but suffered a first round exit.<\/p>\n
The duo is playing as teammates in Lightning uniforms this month also, as they are among the organization\u2019s draft picks playing in the 2026 Prospect Showcase in North Carolina this week.<\/p>\n
Spada, a towering defenseman who isn\u2019t afraid to fight or throw his weight around, collected 75 penalty minutes along with six goals and 21 points last season in Guelph. Czata, meanwhile, has operated at a 20-goal, 50-point pace in each of the past two seasons as Niagara\u2019s captain.<\/p>\n
Lightning Assistant General Manager Jeff Tambellini said two prospects preparing for a postseason push side-by-side is a welcomed opportunity.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a\u00a0great opportunity for both Ethan and Grant to play together. They\u2019re great kids who have a chance to be a big part of our organization moving forward. We believe that a competitive environment, like the one they\u2019ll get in Guelph, will strengthen their relationship and push them to new limits on and off the ice,\u201d Tambellini said.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s beneficial when our prospects are on top teams that have big goals ahead. For these guys, if we were to draw up the ideal team of them to play on this season, the team hosting the Memorial Cup would be the perfect spot. Our entire staff is excited to watch them play on a top team and play meaningful games in the playoffs. Hopefully, both players build off one another knowing that they’re both going to the same NHL organization.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Lightning prospects believe one another will play a key role in 2026-27 with the Storm.<\/p>\n
When the Storm traded for Czata on June 2, Spada was one of the first people to call his new teammate. The duo met for lunch shortly after and is already preparing for life as teammates.<\/p>\n
\u201cHis personality, that’s going to be a big jump in our room,\u201d Spada said of Czata. \u201cIt\u2019s nice to have somebody who was a captain last year for the IceDogs. He\u2019s offensive and defensive. I think he’s the best 200-foot player in the league, so it’s nice that he’s gonna be with me on the same side there.\u201d<\/p>\n
Czata noticed Spada\u2019s offensive jump this past season and also referenced the defender as one of the biggest and toughest players around the OHL.<\/p>\n
\u201cObviously he’s a big guy, but he’s a great guy, great player. Just to have him on my team, someone that when he gets on the ice, it makes it a little bit easier out there.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Memorial Cup is up for grabs in Guelph, and having a close friend to share in that experience only amps the Bolts prospects\u2019 excitement\u2014and friendship\u2014further.<\/p>\n
\u201cMe and Spades have gotten pretty close since we both got drafted last year,\u201d Czata said before laughing. \u201cThis season’s going to be a lot of fun, and at least now I won’t have to fight him.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Grant Spada and Ethan Czata\u2019s friendship was instant. When the fellow Tampa Bay Lightning 2025 draft picks and…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":400532,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[135,137,136],"class_list":["post-400531","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-tampa","tag-tampa","tag-tampa-headlines","tag-tampa-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/400531","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=400531"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/400531\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/400532"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=400531"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=400531"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=400531"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}