With the start of the 2020-21 NHL season (potentially? hopefully?) just around corner we wanted to take a look at some potential breakout players for the season. When we say “breakout,” we mean players that have some NHL experience, but have also played less than 200 games. We have some sense of what they can do, but they have not fully shown all of their potential. Here are the players we are keeping an eye on.

While Pacioretty is still a star in Vegas, the Canadiens received a potential star of their own in Suzuki. Nick Suzuki is going to be the player that ends up defining this trade and based on what we saw from him in his debut season a year ago, he is off to a great start. We saw glimpses of his potential during the regular season when he was one of the top rookie point producers in the league but it was during the playoffs that he really took a step forward and was one of Montreal’s most effective players. He was second among forwards in ice-time and finished as the team’s leading goal scorer and point producer.

It can be tough for a young player to crack a lineup like the one in St. Louis, but Robert Thomas has played a fairly sizable role over his first two years and has shown that he is ready for an even bigger role. How good has he been? During 5-on-5 play over the past two years Thomas ranks second among the team’s forwards in total points per 60 minutes (2.11), trailing only Ryan O'Reilly. In other words, he is already an outstanding playmaker and one of the best the Blues have. He is still only 21 years old. He is in a position where he has the chance to have a great year. The talent and the potential is there for him individually, and with players like Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl, and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins around him he should be a strong scoring environment.

Every time I watch a Stars game Gurianov jumps off the screen at me. He is always making an impact when he is on the ice. Which leads to a question: Why isn’t he on the ice more? He was not only the Stars’ most efficient goal scorer this past season, he was one of the most efficient goal scorers in the entire NHL. His 20 regular season goals were tops on the Stars roster, despite the fact he played just 12 minutes of ice-time per game and was not a primary player on the power play. He was even better in the playoffs. His production a year ago should get him an increased role and it could greatly benefit the Stars’ offense.