Benjamin Rautiainen impressed immediately with the NHL team – wearing the legendary jersey number

Benjamin Rautiainen opened his scoring account in his second game with the Tampa Bay Lightning prospects.

The Finnish prospect, who moved from Tappara to North America, finished off Lightning’s 4–2 goal against the Carolina Hurricanes’ young players. Rautiainen placed the puck accurately into the bottom corner after a beautiful solo effort.

Notably, Rautiainen’s jersey number caught attention among Finnish fans. The 20-year-old forward skated in the rink wearing number 41, a number familiar to Finnish hockey fans from Ilves legend Raimo Helminen.

At Tappara, Rautiainen is used to being seen in number 78.

Rautiainen is a fourth-round draft pick of Tampa Bay from the summer of 2024. He recently signed a three-year entry-level contract with the Lightning.

Last season, Rautiainen won the league’s scoring title and is seriously aiming for a spot on Tampa Bay’s NHL roster.

In his first game, he played alongside Sam O’Reilly and Ethan Gauthier. In the second game, Lucas Mercuri replaced O’Reilly.

Tampa Bay has not yet announced the roster for the training camp. The Lightning will play four preseason games before the start of the NHL season.