Lehigh Valley re-signs Yaniv Perets for added goaltending depth
Perets turned a 39-save shutout at Charlotte into a bigger role, and Lehigh Valley is betting that one more proven option in net can shape next season’s starts.
Yaniv Perets did more than fill in when Lehigh Valley needed a goalie. His 39-save shutout at Charlotte on April 18, a 2-0 road win that earned him first-star honors, gave the Phantoms a hard reset on how they could use him in the crease.
That performance now sits at the center of Lehigh Valley’s decision to re-sign the 26-year-old to a one-year American Hockey League contract for the 2026-27 season. Perets returned to the organization after splitting 2025-26 between the Phantoms and the Reading Royals, and the move signals that Lehigh Valley views him as part of its goaltending pipeline, not just an emergency call-up.
Perets appeared in five games for Lehigh Valley last season and went 2-3-0 with a 2.71 goals-against average and a .905 save percentage. The numbers were modest, but the Charlotte game changed the tone. He stopped all 39 shots he faced in 60 minutes against the Checkers, the kind of outing that can shift a goalie from temporary option to real competition for starts.
His work in Reading strengthened that case. Perets played 27 games for the Royals and went 14-8-4 with a 2.84 goals-against average and a .910 save percentage. He also picked up ECHL Goaltender of the Week honors twice late in the regular season, including recognition during March 16-22 and again April 6-12. The league noted that the April honor was the second of the season and the third of his career.
The broader résumé explains why Lehigh Valley kept him in the mix. Perets has played 88 career ECHL games with Norfolk and Reading, owns a 44-31-8 record with eight shutouts, and has also appeared in seven AHL games between Chicago and Lehigh Valley. He has two NHL appearances with Carolina, and his college track record at Quinnipiac was even more decorated: 74 games, a 56-9-5 record, 21 shutouts, a 1.34 GAA and a .935 save percentage. ECAC Hockey named him Player of the Year in 2022 and Goaltender of the Year in 2023.
Lehigh Valley first signed Perets on July 23, 2025, then recalled him from Reading on Jan. 7 after he had stopped 26 shots in a 4-3 win at Hartford on Nov. 1. The Phantoms also loaned him back to Reading on Dec. 29, Jan. 28 and April 6. With this new deal, they keep a goalie who has already shown he can move between levels and still deliver the one thing every AHL team needs over a long season: another dependable start when the crease gets crowded.
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