New York Islanders’ forward Brock Nelson has reached the 20-goal mark for the sixth time in nine NHL seasons.

Throughout his time on Long Island, Nelson has consistently put up decent numbers. In 650 games played, the underrated goal-scorer has tallied 191 career goals. Nelson has more career goals than career assists.

Of the three times Nelson has failed to hit the 20-goal mark, one was his rookie year, the second he recorded 19 and the third came during the shortened, 56-game 2020 NHL season.

On Friday night against the Winnipeg Jets, Nelson scored his 23rd goal of the season. Nelson’s goal in a 5-2 victory over the Jets marked his fourth straight game with a goal, and he has now scored eight goals in his last 12 games.

Nelson is on pace to break his career-high for the most goals he has ever scored in a season (26). During the 2015-16 season, Nelson scored 26 goals in 81 games and 26 goals in 68 games during the 2019-20 season. With his 23 goals this season in just 46 games played, it seems only a matter of time that Nelson breaks his season-high.

Nelson’s goals recently have been coming from the power-play. Three of his four goals in his last four games have come from the man-advantage. The Islanders’ power-play has struggled this season, but Nelson could be a key figure in its rejuvenation.

It is a shame that the Islanders are wasting a terrific 2021-22 campaign from Nelson. The forward could easily hit 30 or even 35 goals this season, and if the Islanders were in a postseason spot, Nelson’s offense would be a huge weapon in the playoffs.

Either way, this season, Nelson is once again showing just how valuable he is to the team.

Ethan Halle

Ethan is an Economics Major at the University of Florida looking to pursue a double major in Sports Management with a minor in political science.