BUBBLE HOCKEY HEROES

THE NHL’S SUCCESSFUL RETURN TO PLAY FOCUSED THE HOBBY SPOTLIGHT ON BRAYDEN POINT, THATCHER DEMKO, DENIS GURIANOV AND OTHER STANLEY CUP STANDOUTS.

The legend of Brayden Point didn’t necessarily begin the night he scored the goal against Columbus that ended the fourth-longest game in NHL history, but that’s as good a starting point as any.

Because Point, arguably the breakout star of the 2020 postseason, didn’t just win an overtime epic that mesmerized hockey fandom around the world. He also kicked off a personal scoring spree that would see him snap a franchise mark set in 2004 by Brad Richards, and re-engage the hobby after a frustrating regular season.

“I think he set the tone from the start,” said teammate Victor Hedman. “(He took) it to another level, that’s for sure.”

That’s saying something. Point broke through to superstar status (on the ice, anyway), with a 41-goal, 92-point performance that keyed Tampa’s record-smashing 2018-19 regular season. “He’s an elite player in every sense of the word,” coach Jon Cooper said. “He has that ability to take over a game in a way few players can.”

But Point, like the rest of his teammates, struggled through a four-game sweep at the hands of the Blue Jackets in the opening round of the 2019 playoffs, scoring just once while going minus-5. It was a disillusioning end to a season of great promise, and immediately curtailed the demand that had been building for his 2016-17 RCs.

With a two-goal effort in this year’s playoff opener, it was obvious he wasn’t going to let that happen again.

Point, an overlooked gem discovered in the third round of the 2014 draft, turned nearly every game into a personal highlight reel. There was the three-point effort – including another OT winner – in the Game 5 clincher that sent the Jackets packing. There was the relentless shift that led to Hedman’s double-OT goal that eliminated the Boston Bruins in Game 5.

And then there was his all-world performance in

Game 1 against the Islanders that saw him score a dazzling individual goal on his first shift, draw a penalty on his fourth, and tally his second on his fifth shift. By the time the night was done, he’d produced a career-high five points to power an 8-2 Lightning victory.

“He’s a huge part of our team,” said Alex Killorn. “He drives our team in a lot of the way we play, the energy we play with.”

As he took charge on the big stage, the hobby hopped on the bandwagon. Sales of graded copies of his 2016-17 Upper Deck Young Guns RC (#205) skyrocketed, while raw copies of the base RC and parallels easily topped book prices. Other key RCs, including his RPA/249 from The Cup (#142) and SP Authentic (#160), were in demand as well.

At 24, Point is just entering his offensive prime. And with the Bolts poised to contend for the next five years or more, his cards are only hinting at their full potential.

Let’s look at some of the other players who enhanced their hobby brand with strong postseason performances.