I don't think it's a huge error. Pelletier has looked pretty good this season as well. Foote is over 6 feet and 200 lbs... Pelletier is not that. It isn't too surprising if it takes the smaller guy longer before he's ready for the NHL.
Basically, I agree philosophically with what the Bolts are trying to do - acquire good depth players who can fill out your lineup on reasonable deals with a little term, so you can afford the inevitable raises guys like Cirelli and Sergachev will get in the offseason and extend your window without having to ship out major pieces (Miller notwithstanding - he wasn't a major piece at the time he was dealt). But the actual best way to be able to do that is to have guys on ELCs in your lineup. While they're there, they cost almost nothing. If they perform okay, but don't "wow" anyone, well, they're RFAs and can be re-signed for less than what their market value would be otherwise. if they do "wow" people, then they become valuable trade assets.
Basically, Foote is a higher risk, higher reward bet than Coleman is, and in a vacuum, you could see the logic in either choice, and in the Lightning's situation you might want to lean towards the safer route, which is Coleman (in that you know for sure he's an NHL player who can at minimum chip in the occasional goal). But given that the cost of taking that route is a 1st round pick and losing the player after a year and a half (as opposed to at least three, for Foote's ELC), I would have rolled the dice on Foote being able to fill that depth spot.
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