Jakob Pelletier only appeared in five NHL games this season, his lowest since he made his debut in 2022-23. While that probably wasn’t what he was hoping for when he inked his three-year deal with the Tampa Bay Lightning last summer, he didn’t let it affect his game. Instead, he put up a career season with the Syracuse Crunch, leading the AHL in points.
In turn, he was named the Fortune Tires “Expect More” AHL Player of the Year. In 63 games, Pelletier put up 28 goals and 49 assists. Five of his goals came short-handed which led the league while he added 31 power-play points. Oh yeah, he finished the season with a 20-game point streak, a Syracuse Crunch record.
Did the 25-year-old do enough to earn a spot on the Lightning’s roster next season? If nothing else, he earned a long look in training camp. The Bolts will have a spot or two open on the bottom-six and Pelletier could thrive in that role while also helping out on the penalty kill (see the five short-handed goals note above). He may not have made much of an impact in his limited time with the Lightning last season, but he’ll be coming into camp with a ton of positive energy.
It is worth noting that Pelletier’s contract switches from a two-way deal to a one-way deal next season and he’ll pull in $850,000 in Syracuse or Tampa.
Hockey News
Doug Ostrover sells stake in NFL team [Bloomberg via MSN]
The Lightning’s co-owner is getting out of the NFL game. Ostrover is set to sell his shares of the Washington Commanders back to the Josh Harris-led ownership group. It will allow him to focus more exclusively on the Lightning (and put some money back in his pocket).
Lightning sign Max Groshev [Raw Charge]
The hard-charging defenseman is staying in the blue and white of the Lightning and Crunch as he inks a two-year deal. No salary arbitration for the Lightning!
Canucks fire Adam Foote [Canucks Army]
It was inevitable that new general manager Ryan Johnson would want to bring in his own guy to coach the team. Foote’s tenure behind the desk lasted just one season, and this opens up another opportunity for Vegas to not allow Bruce Cassidy to interview for.
NHL Coaches Association releases statement on Cassidy situation [NHLCA Twitter]
They are “monitoring the situation”. The Golden Knights aren’t necessarily doing anything wrong, but it’s also not cool (at least according to the Coaches Association).
Vegas Golden Knights reportedly lose appeal [AP News]
It looks like the Golden Knights will be able to show up late to Day 2 of the draft as their appeal to the league was reportedly denied. They will be stripped of their second round pick.
