SYRACUSE, N.Y. – The Tampa Bay Lightning have signed forward Benjamin Rautiainen (row-tee-EYE-nen) to a three-year, entry-level contract, vice president and general manager Julien BriseBois announced today.
Â
Rautiainen, 20, appeared in 59 games for Tappara in the Finnish Liiga this season, tallying 25 goals and a league-leading 77 points. A native of Tampere, Finland, Rautiainen became the first player to surpass 70 points since the 2007-08 Liiga season and received the Lasse Oksanen Award as the league's top player throughout the regular season. Rautiainen also played in 18 playoff games with Tappara, recording one goal and seven points, helping the team to the Liiga Championship.
Â
The 6-foot, 174-pound Rautiainen has appeared in 112 career games with Tappara, recording 36 goals and 111 points. He has also played in 27 career playoff games and owns three goals and 11 points. Rautiainen also represented Finland at the 2025 IIHF World Junior Championship where he notched two goals and four points, winning a silver medal.
Â
Rautiainen was drafted by Tampa Bay in the fourth round, 108th overall, of the 2025 NHL Draft.
Ticket packages for the 2026-27 season are on sale now and can be purchased in person at the Crunch office located inside the Upstate Medical University Arena at Onondaga County War Memorial at 800 S. State St. in Syracuse, by calling the office at 315-473-4444 or online through
Ticketmaster. For the latest Crunch news, visit
www.syracusecrunch.com or follow the club on Facebook (
www.facebook.com/syracusecrunch), X (
@SyracuseCrunch) and Instagram (
@syracusecrunch).