We’re finally getting around to reviewing the 2022-23 season. Instead of assigning grades or any of that nonsense, we’ll start by looking at the player’s best goal from the season and go from there. For some it’ll be easy, others have way more to choose from.
Because I need to say it somewhere, can I just acknowledge that throughout this Goal of the Year series that the Nashville Predators gave up a lot of breakaways? So many! You’re welcome, Barry Trotz. Did your coach’s job for you!
Player
Brayden Point
Stat Line
82 games played, 51 goals, 44 assists, 235 shots, 37.42 iXG, 7 PIM, 37 hits, 19:40 ice time
Playoffs – 6 games played, 2 goals, 2 assists, 20 shots, 2.30 iXG, 2 PIM, 14 hits, 20:32 ice time
Goal of the Year Video
If the embed doesn’t work (we’re still working out the kinks here) [NHL.com]
Goal of the Year Description
Probably Point’s most dynamic goal of the year here. There were some others that I’ve shared below where Point just embarrasses some defenders and goalies, but this goal where he shows off his high end speed and puck handling at said speed takes the cake for me. The acceleration he created in the neutral zone to make the four defenders against him look absolutely stationary was impressive to say the least.
Not to mention he picked the far top corner on the backhand over Grubauer’s shoulder and elbow at an insanely tight angle and trajectory. I don’t think we appreciate enough Point’s ability to find the net at tight angles close to the create and send the puck where he wants it to go despite having to have his stick in weird positions. This goal showed all of Point’s best attributes so I hope you enjoyed watching it.
Speaking of watching Point goals, I also want to give a thank you to this youtube channel for having compilations of the bigger scoring seasons on the Lightning. It would’ve been so much harder to choose a goal of the year without them. It genuinely would’ve taken all night to load up every NHL.com goal highlight video and watch them, which is what I did for the low-scoring defenders and defenders playing forward earlier in the series (I’m looking at you, Pebbles).
I also had some takeaways watching this video that I’d like to share:
- Brayden Point is bloody quick and sneakily accelerates in the neutral zone to be too fast to handle in the final third.
- The Stamkos-to-Kucherov-to-Point in the middle of a PK box made by teams like Montreal were just too easy to exploit. Kuch was having a field day.
- Seriously, speed is everything in the offensive zone. It makes you so much more dangerous and Point is a prime demonstrator of that.
- Dave Randorf would lose his voice if Point scored another 50.
- The only empty netter Point scored was his 51st goal.
This honorable mention to tie the game late in the third was one of those hilarious deceptions by Kucherov to leave Point ALL alone with the widest of nets in front of him. [NHL.com]
Second honorable mention to when he dummied Ville Husso so bad for #50. [NHL.com]
How did 2022-23 go for them?
After a down year in 2021-22 where he scored at less than 1 goal per 60 minutes and his shot share fell to just barely above 50%, Brayden Point came back with a bang, setting a career high in goals, 5v5 goals (29), and expected goals. He also shot at the highest rate of his career (21%!) to boost an excellent year into extraordinary heights.
This was an award-winning year for Point, but he didn’t get his flowers in the Hart, Lindsay, Rocket, or Selke because of four names: Connor, McDavid, Patrice, and Bergeron. At the very least give him a Lady Byng (if he could stay out of fights next season maybe he can win one). It’s time, let’s break through the national media noise the Lightning still can’t find a way to be heard in and do it.
I was very impressed with Point’s consistency this season when it came to scoring goals. He had one five-game scoreless streak and one seven-game scoreless streak and never went more than two games without a point. His ability at always finding a way on the scoresheet was one of the reasons why the Lightning were only shutout twice this season.
In every one of the 82 games you could confidently assume Point was going to show off his elite skill and see at least one of his creations go in the back of the net. And that was proven to be true because the Lightning’s first line of Hagel-Point-Kucherov was just so dynamic that they could pull off some clever tricks. And because Point was shooting over 20% on the year, he was set to get one very often.
In the five rare nights where Point failed to get a shot on goal, he still had an accumulated 13 shot attempts, meaning he was getting chances, they just weren’t connecting. Also, in those five games, either the team won or he won his minutes against top competition, or both.
2023-24 Contract Status
Signed to a sweetheart 8 x $9.5 million contract that started last season and will end when he’s 34. Point turned 27 in March, meaning without team control he is eligible to have trade clauses starting July 1st. And as expected he has a No-Move Clause for this season and the next three, locking him into Tampa Bay come hell or high water (or both, it seems). He has a 10-team No-Trade Clause in the final three years of his deal.
Considering this is Point’s UFA contract, he’s signed to a very cheap deal considering what others around the league have gotten. Sebastian Aho signed an eight-year extension this summer and he will be making more once that kicks in after this season. Players with higher cap hits include Jack Eichel, Alex Barkov, Johnny Gaudreau, and don’t even get me started on Mitch Marner who’s richer than all of them and I have no idea why.
Do we expect them to score more or less next season?
Coming off a career shooting year, it’s expected he’ll come back to the mid-40’s in terms of goals. Hopefully we do get lucky enough to see another 50 goal next year, but what I would like to see as Point ages into his late 20s and into his 30s, is his xGF% and GF% rising out of the low 50s and into the mid-to-high 50s. I would love to see him have a season where he carries 60% of the play and lowers the opponent’s goals numbers while maintaining his scoring touch.
He has it in him with his strong awareness skills, speed, tenacity, and ability to keep the puck on his stick (or his linemates’) for long stretches of time.
Also if Point could score a hat trick next year, that would be great. He scored two goals on 11 separate occasions last season and had eight games with three or more points. He’s due for a second career hatty (first one, Nov 15th, 2018 vs Pittsburgh).
