This past NHL season saw nine players hit the 100-point plateau, but with a new season inching closer and more players hungry to up their game, how many will join the Century Club in 2024-25?

The 2023-24 NHL season was an offensive thrill ride. Highlights included 69 goals from Auston Matthews, 144 points by Nikita Kucherov and 100 assists from both Kucherov and Connor McDavid.

But there are some small indications that the NHL’s efforts to increase offense have peaked — at least for the time being.

The average save percentage dipped slightly last season, from .904 to .903, but scoring was also at the lowest level in three years. Teams averaged 3.11 goals per game after hitting 3.18 in 2022-23 and 3.14 in 2021-22.

After 11 players cracked 100 points in the 2022-23 season, that number slipped to nine last year. But that's still a phenomenal number. Twenty-nine players have now logged a 100-point season through just four seasons in the 2020s, including Connor McDavid’s 105 points in 56 games in the shortened 56-game campaign in 2020-21. 

In the 2010s, only 15 players hit 100 points in the entire decade, and Kucherov was the only one who managed to get above 120, in his Hart Trophy-winning 2018-19 campaign.

Here’s a closer look at the players who hit the 100-point mark last year, and who could be on track to join them soon:

The 2023-24 Century Club

Nikita Kucherov: 44-100-144

In his age-30 season, Kucherov logged the fourth 100-point season of his career and won his second Art Ross Trophy.

One of the NHL’s all-time draft bargains when he was selected 58th overall in 2011, Kucherov leads his draft class with 873 career points, 130 more than second-place Johnny Gaudreau. Another standout year could get him to 1,000 points in 2024-25.

Kucherov is signed for three more seasons at a cap hit of $9.5 million.

Nathan MacKinnon: 51-89-140

Not content to sit back in the first season at a league-high cap hit of $12.6 million, MacKinnon fired a career-high 405 shots on hapless goaltenders in 2023-24. 

His first 50-goal campaign and second consecutive 100-point season earned him his first-ever Hart Trophy and Ted Lindsay Award.

Now at 899 career points, the first-overall pick from 2013 is the highest-scoring player from his draft class by a wide margin. Aleksander Barkov is second at 711. 

MacKinnon will almost certainly crack 1,000 next season.

Connor McDavid: 32-100-132

In nine NHL seasons, McDavid has reached triple-digits in points seven times and doesn't turn 28 until January.

The No. 1 pick from 2015, McDavid should be the next player to reach 1,000 career points. He goes into the new season at 982 — more than 300 points ahead of second-place Mitch Marner (639) in his draft class.

McDavid has two years remaining on the contract he signed at age 20, which carries a cap hit of $12.5 million a year.

Artemi Panarin: 49-71-120

The oldest member of the 2023-24 Century Club at 32, Panarin has produced consistently since joining the Rangers five seasons ago on a seven-year deal with a cap hit of just over $11.6 million.

He jumped to a new level last year, cracking 100 points for the first time and scoring 17 more goals than ever before.

Undrafted, Panarin’s 781 points over 672 games work out to an average of 1.16 points per game. That ranks him sixth in the league since he arrived in the league with his Calder-winning rookie campaign in 2015-16.

David Pastrnak: 47-63-110

It’s the second-straight triple-digit campaign for Pastrnak, who was following up a 61-goal campaign from 2022-23.

Selected 25th overall in 2014, the 28-year-old Czech winger leads his draft class in goals with 348, one more than second-place Leon Draisaitl. This season, he’s entering the second year of an eight-year deal with a cap hit of $11.25 million.

Auston Matthews: 69-38-107

At just 26, Matthews already has three Rocket Richard trophies, two 60-goal seasons, and two 100-point campaigns. At 649 points in 562 games, the No. 1 pick from 2016 holds a 70-point lead over second-place Matthew Tkachuk in his draft class.

Matthews’ 107-point season in 2023-24 was fuelled by his historic 69 goals. He’s starting a new four-year deal this fall, at a league-high cap hit of $13.25 million.

Leon Draisaitl: 41-65-106

Selected third overall in 2014, Draisaitl leads his draft class with 850 points, 123 more than second-place Pastrnak. Turning 29 in October, he has an Art Ross, a Hart and a Ted Lindsay from the shortened 2019-20 campaign.

It felt a bit startling when Draisaitl signed an eight-year extension with a cap hit of $8.5 million after putting up 77 points in his third year, in 2016-17. Now, with one season remaining, that deal has proven to be an outstanding value for the Oilers.

Draisaitl already has five 100-point seasons on the books and also played at a 123-point pace in the short 2020-21 campaign. Draisaitl is the picture of consistency, with the ability to elevate his game in the playoffs. Expect a monster extension when his new deal is announced.

Mikko Rantanen: 42-62-104

Rantanen has never been a finalist for an NHL award. But he has just put up back-to-back 100-point seasons and hit 55 goals in 2022-23 while averaging more than 22 minutes a night for the past two years.

Selected 10th overall in 2015, Rantanen sits third in his draft class with 617 points. He turns 28 in October and is also looking for a new contract as he plays out the last season of a six-year deal with a cap hit of $9.25 million.

J.T. Miller: 37-66-103

Now 31, J.T. Miller has elevated his game since joining the Vancouver Canucks in the summer of 2019. The fanbase panicked when he inked a seven-year extension with an $8-million cap hit. But in the first year of that new deal, he put those fears to rest by cracking 100 points for the first time in his career.

Drafted 15th overall in 2011, Miller now ranks seventh in his draft class in points (639) and eighth in goals (238).

Players to Watch in 2024-25

Over a full season, players need about 1.22 points per game to reach 100 points.

Two players hit that mark with fewer than 82 games played last year: Kirill Kaprizov, with 96 points in 75 games and Mitch Marner, with 85 in 69. William Nylander also came oh-so-close to hitting triple digits for the first time, finishing with 98 points in 82 games.

Kaprizov hit the century mark in 2021-22, with 108 points, so he should get back there if he can stay healthy. Marner has made it into the 90s three times, peaking at 99 in 2022-23. He has plenty of incentive to produce his best year yet as he heads toward potential unrestricted free agency.

Five other players broke 100 in 2022-23, then fell off the pace a bit last year. Matthew Tkachuk and Jason Robertson each had 109-point seasons, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins hit 104, Elias Pettersson was at 102 and Erik Karlsson had 101.

Of that group, the most pressure will fall on Pettersson, who’s starting a new eight-year deal at $11.6 million per season.

In Tampa, Brayden Point has three 90-plus point seasons under his belt and has cracked 40 goals three times. Filip Forsberg and Sam Reinhart both got to 94 for the first times in their careers last season. 

If the New Jersey Devils realize the potential they’ve teased with their strong off-season, Jack Hughes could find his way into the Century Club. He reached 99 points in 78 games in 2022-23, but injuries limited him to 62 games and 74 points last year.

Could Jack end up racing his older brother to 100 points? Last year, Quinn Hughes led all defensemen with 92 points on his way to the 2024 Norris Trophy. Everything about his work ethic and determination suggests that he’ll try to come back even stronger this fall.

More than likely, Cale Makar will be right on Hughes' tail. He finished with 90 points in 77 games last season and had 86 in 77 when he won his Norris in 2021-22. 

Don’t ignore Roman Josi’s blue-line production, either. He and Forsberg should both get a statistical boost from Nashville's new offense-first roster headlined by Steven Stamkos and Jonathan Marchessault, and Josi's numbers were already massive. He finished with 85 points last season and got all the way to 96 in 2021-22.