[Update 11:20 AM] – The Lightning have announced the deal.
Just because the rest of the world is sleeping doesn’t mean Julien BriseBois isn’t working. It appears the Tampa Bay Lightning general manager kept the free agent frenzy going well into the dark hours of the night as a report emerged at roughly 1:00 am that the Bolts had signed forward Jakob Pelletier to a three-year contract.
Jakob Pelletier: 3 years Tampa Bay
— Elliotte Friedman (Bot) (@notfriedgehnic.bsky.social) July 2, 2025 at 1:10 AM
While the Lightning have yet to officially confirm the contract, reports are that it is a two-way deal for the first year, and then a one-way deal for the final two seasons. The NHL cap hit is at $775,000. Pelletier was not offered a qualifying offer by the Philadelphia Flyers this summer, making him an unrestricted free agent.
So, what makes this 5’11”, 170 lbs. forward such an intriguing signing for the Tampa Bay Lightning? First off, he’s just 24-years-old. In a time of year where teams are backing money trucks up the driveways of players in their late-20’s, early-30’s (and in the case of Brad Marchand, his early-50’s), the Lightning signed a player who still has potential to develop.
Second, his pedigree. Pelletier was the 26th pick in the 2019 draft. Selected by the Calgary Flames (one spot ahead of the Lightning who took Nolan Foote). He earned that draft spot with a couple of really good seasons with the Moncton Wildcats, putting up 62 goals and 88 assists over 125 games prior to his selection by the Flames. He continued producing in the QMJHL, finishing out his junior career split between Moncton and Val-d’Or Foreurs before turning pro in the 2021-22 season.
In his first season with the Stockton Heat of the AHL he was named to the All-Rookie Team after a 62 point (27 goals, 35 assists) season. He debuted (against the Tampa Bay Lightning) in the NHL the next season, getting into 24 games and recording 7 points (3 goals, 4 assists) for the Flames. He would spend the next two seasons bouncing back-and-forth between the AHL and NHL before being included in the trade that sent Morgan Frost and Joel Farabee to the Flames. Despite a strong finish to the season, Philadelphia decided not to tender him an offer.
Why? Well, Thomas over at Broad Street Bullies had a pretty good break down of Pelletier’s season, and pointed out that there is a pretty deep crop of young forwards currently playing in the City of Brotherly Love. Chances are it was just a numbers game, and the Flyers weren’t comfortable at the thought of going through arbitration and getting stuck at a number they didn’t want to pay.
The Lightning were able to swoop in and sign him. Chances are the offer of a three-year deal and a little stability would be appealing to a young player coming off of his entry-level deal.
Now, let’s acknowledge that this signing does come with a little risk. Pelletier has dealt with a couple of upper-body injuries over the last few seasons, including shoulder surgery that limited him to 31 games in the 2023-24 season. As a player who doesn’t eclipse the sun every time he steps onto the ice, reoccurring upper-body injuries are something to keep an eye out for in a physical league.
Secondly, for him to succeed, he’ll probably need to find playing time in the middle-six. A lot of his early struggles in Philadelphia have been attributed to then-coach John Tortorella “burying” him on the fourth line. It’s probably not a coincidence that Pelletier scored three goals in eight games and saw his ice-time increase after Torts left the organization.
He will find himself in a similar spot with the Lightning. Can he secure a spot where his offensive skills can keep him in the line-up? There are some similarities between Pelletier and Alex Barre-Boulet in that regards. They’re at their best when playing an offensive role, but to earn that ice time at the NHL level they also have to show that they can help the team in a more limited role first.
That being said, the juice is worth the squeeze on this deal. With a lack of high-end draft picks, the Lightning need to find alternative ways to add players with skill to the system. Taking a chance on a player like Pelletier is one of those ways. He should battle for a spot (which has the added benefit of forcing other players on the roster to compete) in training camp. If he doesn’t make the Lightning, he will make the Syracuse Crunch a better team. With his salary under $1 million, it won’t count against the cap during his time in the AHL so it doesn’t handcuff the Lightning in anyway.
Should he earn a call-up and produce, then the Lightning have a bargain on their roster.
[Update – Adding the official press release]
TAMPA BAY – The Tampa Bay Lightning have signed forward Jakob Pelletier to a three-year contract, vice president and general manager Julien BriseBois announced today. Pelletier will be on a two-way contract for the 2025-26 season before the deal converts to a one-way contract for the remaining two years.
Pelletier, 24, split time between the Calgary Flames and Philadelphia Flyers last season, skating in a combined 49 games with the two clubs and recording seven goals and 19 points. He also appeared in 20 games with the Calgary Wranglers of the American Hockey League, logging three goals and 19 points with a plus-7 rating.
A native of Quebec City, Pelletier made his NHL debut on January 21, 2023 against the Lightning before recording his first career point, a goal, on February 11, 2023 against the Buffalo Sabres. The 5-foot-11, 180-pound forward has played in 86 career NHL games with Calgary and Philadelphia, registering 11 goals and 29 points with three game-winning tallies. He has also appeared in 139 career AHL contests with Calgary and the Stockton Heat, accruing 51 goals and 130 points with a plus-32 rating and 18 power-play goals. In 28 Calder Cup Playoff games, Pelletier has recorded nine goals and 20 points with 65 shots on goal. He was named to the AHL All-Rookie Team in 2022 after notching 27 goals and 62 points in 66 games with Stockton in his debut season.
Prior to turning pro, Pelletier played junior hockey in the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League for the Moncton Wildcats and Val-d’Or Foreurs. In 210 career QMJHL games, he registered 107 goals and 275 points with a plus-114 rating. He also saw action in 32 QMJHL playoff games, logging nine goals and 31 points with 14 penalty minutes. Pelletier served as captain for Moncton in 2019-20 before captaining Val-d’Or during the 2020-21 campaign and received multiple awards and honors during his junior career, including being named to the All-Rookie Team in 2018, winning the Frank J. Selke Trophy in 2020 and being named to the First All-Star Team in 2021.
Pelletier has also gained experience with Team Canada on the international stage. In 2019, he represented Canada at the IIHF Under-18 Men’s World Championship and collected two assists before playing in seven games at the 2021 IIHF World Junior Championship and winning the Silver Medal, recording three goals and seven points.
Pelletier was originally drafted by Calgary in the first round, 26th overall, of the 2019 NHL Draft.
