A year ago, Jakob Pelletier entered training camp as a frontrunner for a spot on the Calgary Flames opening night roster.
That path is less clear today.
Two shoulder injuries derailed Pelletier’s 2023-24 season and relegated him mostly to AHL duties with the Calgary Wranglers. Despite the prevailing narrative that the Flames are mired in a rebuild, there arguably are more wingers ahead of him on the depth chart now than a year ago..
Last year was a challenge physically and emotionally, but a summer that saw him spend time with family, rehab his shoulder and play lots of golf has him feeling re-centered and like himself again.
“You kind of come back to the basics. There were a lot of things that happened off the ice, as well, that people don’t know,” Pelletier said. “To go back home and see my family and my brothers and spend time with them, that was the most important thing. You just need a break, it was a s—–, sorry, but it is what it is. I took a break, I cleared my head.”
With clear eyes and a clean bill of health, Pelletier is hoping to pick up where he left off in 2022-23, when scored three goals and added four assists in 24 games in the back-half of the season.
The 23-year-old has his work cut out for him if he’s going to earn a roster spot coming out of training camp, though.
The free-agent acquisitions of Anthony Mantha and Ryan Lomberg added veteran depth to the Flames roster on the wing. The acquisition of Andrei Kuzmenko last season did the same and the emergence of Connor Zary and Martin Pospisil – who may be playing centre this year – as everyday, productive NHLers mean there aren’t many empty spots on the wing just waiting to be grabbed.
Prior to last season, Flames GM Craig Conroy talked about leaving places open for young players, but they didn’t really do that this off-season.
If guys like Pelletier and Matt Coronato are going to play big NHL minutes this year, they’re going to need to beat out some guys who have a lot more experience.
“They have to earn a spot, nothing is given,” Flames head coach Ryan Huska said. “I know everybody wants a young guy to play and if they push someone out and they’re better than someone, then great, that makes our team better.
“There’s a lot of competition up front on our team, that’s the area where we’re the deepest.”
Pelletier, who was the Flames first-round pick at 26th overall in 2019, isn’t complaining about the challenge. By his own admission and through no fault of his own, last year just didn’t go the way anyone would have wanted.
A major shoulder surgery and lengthy rehab was followed by a second shoulder injury soon after he returned to action. It shook his confidence.
A great summer has him feeling better mentally and physically now, though, and he’s good with having to earn his spot this year.
“I was kind of the underdog everywhere I went, from midget to here,” Pelletier said. “I kind of proved all along that I could play and now it’s for me to do it again. I remember my first year in the AHL, not a lot of people would have put me where I was, but I said to myself ‘Pelts, you’ve just got to come back to the basics and play the game that got you here’ and that’s what I’m going to do now and for the next six or seven months.”
ICE CHIPS
Finally, Matvei Gridin knows where he’ll be playing next year. The Flames first-round draft pick, 28th overall, was traded by the Val-d’Or Foreurs to the Shawinigan Cataractes on Friday morning. Gridin had been committed to play at the University of Michigan this season, but opted to go the Canadian junior route and was drafted first overall by Val-d’Or in the annual import draft. He currently is at Flames training camp … Kevin Bahl didn’t participate in practice for the second straight day on Friday at Winsport. Huska said he’s day-to-day and won’t be out long, but is not expected to practise on Saturday, either … The Flames have extended their partnership with Play Alberta and will be wearing a patch on their home helmets featuring AGLC’s responsible gambling program, GameSense, and a Play Alberta insignia on their home jerseys. The Stampeders, Wranglers and Roughnecks will all integrate the Play Alberta logo onto their uniforms, as well.
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