As per the Calgary Flames, rookie forward Jakob Pelletier will be out indefinitely with a left shoulder injury and will require surgery. There is no timeline set for a return.
Pelletier was injured in Monday’s preseason game against the Seattle Kraken after taking a hard hit from Marian Studenic. Pelletier appeared to be holding his chest and shoulder area after the hit as he exited the ice with a trainer. Studenic was assessed a five-minute major penalty for boarding and was ejected from the game.
The 22-year-old appeared in 24 games with the Flames during the 2022-23 campaign, where he tallied three goals and four assists for seven points in that frame. Pelletier He split the season with the Flames’ American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, the Calgary Wranglers. While in the AHL, Pelletier notched 16 goals and 21 assists for 37 points.
Pelletier was originally drafted in the first round, No. 26 overall in the 2019 NHL Draft by the Flames. He spent four seasons in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL) and appeared in 210 games with the Moncton Wildcats and Val-D’or Foreurs, where he tallied 107 goals and 168 assists for 275 points. He was named the QMJHL Most Sportsmanlike Player in 2019-20 and named to the QMJHL First All-Star team in 2020-21.
Pelletier has impressed over his short time in Calgary and during training camp and preseason, where he received high praise from head coach Ryan Huska. “He has a good skill set, he’s a very cerebral player, he understands the game really well, so you can trust him with your top players and his ability to make plays,” said Huska.
The Flames open up their 2023-24 season on Oct. 11 against the Winnipeg Jets.
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