Way back in 2019, the Calgary Flames selected Jakob Pelletier in the first round of the NHL Draft. At the time, what Pelletier lacked in size he made up for in tenacity and versatility, and he was one of the QMJHL’s top forwards during his tenure.

While we’ve seen flashes of Pelletier’s junior brilliance as a professional, most often with the Flames’ American Hockey League farm teams, he hasn’t quite unlocked his full potential at the NHL level prior to this season.

20 games into his current run with the Flames, he may finally be on his way to becoming the player that the Flames hoped he could be when they selected him. On Thursday night at the Saddledome, Pelletier was the catalyst for the Flames in a 5-2 comeback win over the Buffalo Sabres.

Pelletier had an eventful evening. He began the game on the fourth line, playing alongside Ryan Lomberg and Clark Bishop. He played 4:34 in the first period, 3:35 at even strength plus 59 seconds on the penalty kill – he was on the ice for Jonathan Huberdeau’s shorthanded breakaway goal that opened the scoring.

Early in the second period, Pelletier was shifted to the top line, joining Huberdeau and Nazem Kadri. Shortly after he joined that trio, he made a nice play to send Huberdeau into the offensive zone, leading to Kadri’s game-tying goal.

Pelletier was credited with a secondary assist on the sequence. He played 4:34 in the second period.

Early in the third period, Pelletier was a crucial part of a puck-cycling play in the Buffalo zone that led to a Brayden Pachal point shot that Pelletier got his stick on and deflected past Buffalo netminder Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen.

That goal put the Flames ahead 3-2. He later received a slashing minor for a whack he gave to Sabres forward Tyson Kozak – he had previously attempted to deposit Kozak into the visitors’ bench amidst a fracas during the game. Pelletier played 5:50 in the third period.

All-told, Pelletier assisted on the game-tying goal and scored the game-winning goal. He was on the ice for the first three Flames goals and was a perpetually noticeable presence whenever he hit the ice.

Following the game, Flames head coach Ryan Huska shared why he moved Pelletier from the fourth line to the top line early in the second period and what he liked about his performance.

“He was skating,” said Huska. “I mean, he was harder on the puck tonight, finished some checks, which we don’t ask him to do like he did in front of our bench. But we want him to be a guy that’s competitive on the puck and out of the puck, and then use the speed to his advantage. And I thought he did that for his line mates. I thought he did it for himself. So that’s the best game I’ve seen him play in the NHL. And hopefully it’s a sign of some great things to come for him.”

In October, the Flames played Pelletier on the waiver wire at the end of training camp. He cleared and was sent to the Wranglers to work on his game. When he returned to the Flames in early December, after 20 games with the farm team, he seemed like a player with renewed confidence in himself and his abilities.

On Thursday night against the Sabres, Pelletier showed just how valuable he can be to the Flames when he plays the way he’s capable of playing.

The Flames are back in action on Saturday in Minnesota against the Wild.