The Tampa Bay Lightning announced today that forward Jakob Pelletier has been reassigned to the team’s AHL affiliate, the Syracuse Crunch.
Tampa recalled Pelletier on Saturday, and he served as a healthy scratch for the club’s comeback win over the Carolina Hurricanes. The 24-year-old 2019 first-round pick has been stellar for the Crunch this season. He leads the team in scoring with 31 points in just 24 games, a total that also ties Laval Rocket forward Laurent Dauphin for the scoring lead across the entire AHL.
Pelletier’s recall cost the Crunch their most lethal offensive player during their two-game weekend swing through Hartford and Providence. The Crunch defeated the Wolf Pack on Friday night but fell to the Bruins on Saturday, results that kept them tied with Laval for the division lead.
While he didn’t get to play during his brief stint on the Lightning’s roster, the recall did come with a marginal financial benefit for Pelletier. He signed a three-year contract with the Lightning over the summer, one that carries a $775K NHL salary across all years. While his deal has a one-way structure in year two and year three of the deal, Pelletier is playing on a two-way contract structure this season. Pelletier’s AHL salary this season is $250K, and his guarantee is $350K.
This most recent recall slightly improved Pelletier’s chances of pushing past that guarantee in terms of total compensation by the end of the season in the event that further, more lasting recalls are in store for him down the line.