2023 in review

• 2023 record – 3^rd in Rurak Conference, 6^th overall (9W – 1OTW – 1OTL – 15L)

The Lightning’s first season in the AIHL was a successful entry to the league, with an appearance in the postseason on the back of being a high-scoring juggernaut, especially early in the season. However, their overall record masks a significant disparity between their record against the struggling Rhinos and Adrenaline, and the rest of the league. They ran up some huge scores against those teams, but didn’t trouble the other teams much, and benefited from the Rurak Conference being weaker than the Hellyer Conference.

Figure 1: Brisbane Lightning key stats in 2023 AIHL Season

With ownership changes over the offseason, and several young local players having stints overseas, Brisbane do look poised for growth as a club into 2024 as that young core continues to develop. The strength of scoring was led by a fairly wide spread of players – with 5 players scoring over 40 points for the season. At the other end of the ice however, despite starting the season both registering shutouts, the goaltending tandem of Steve Harris and Nick Novysedlak put up an overall average save percentage of 0.858, and faced over 35 shots per game – showing some defensive weakness.

Table 1: Brisbane Lightning top 5 scorers in 2023

Table 2: Brisbane Lightning 2023 goalie stats

History

With the Lightning only joining the league in 2023 in a full capacity, the history is a short one – so we will focus on the players themselves.

Aside from since-retired captain Damien Bright, Harley Anderson was the player with the most AIHL experience prior to 2023 – courtesy of two seasons with the Adelaide Adrenaline. This experience showed, with Anderson racking up 42 points in 25 games and leading from the front. Over his AIHL career, he has been a solid performer against all teams – with at least 0.4 points per game against all opponents, but he really loves to play the Rhinos. In four games against the Central Coast in 2023, he put up a ridiculous 22 points.

Others with experience prior to 2023 included Thomas Kiliwnik (one season with Newcastle) and journeyman goaltender, Nick Novysedlak – finding an AIHL team in his home state again after 11 long years. Novysedlak found himself with his fifth AIHL team (plus a season in the PHL with the Brisbane Rampage), and along with Steve Harris put up solid, if not spectacular goaltending.

While the history for the Lightning may be brief, the future looks bright. A number of young players have spent the off-season plying their trade overseas which is a great way to develop their game and take the next step.

Table 3: Brisbane Lightning top 10 scorers, 2013 to 2023

Table 4: Brisbane Lightning key goalie stats, 2013 to 2023

*Per game calculations based on 60 minutes, not 50.

Table 5: Top 10 scorers against Brisbane Lightning, 2023

New players/imports

The Lightning are yet to make any player announcements for the 2024 season.

Player to watch

Mikko Rippon is a young D-man, with a bright future, especially with his size – which will give him great reach on the blue line. Having spent a northern winter playing in the US, and a stint with the U20 national team, the 17-year-old is in a perfect place to be paired with an import defenceman again to continue to learn his craft. Along with Lachlan Tripp, Thomas Kiliwnik, and Neil Pretorius, the Lightning have a collection of blueliners coming through – and the oldest of them has just turned 25.

Keys for 2024

If we learned anything about the Lightning in 2023, it was that they know how to score – so the front end of the ice is likely to look after itself this season. With some imports supported by a local contingent featuring Anderson, Fodor, Wanat and the Rapchuk brothers, scoring should be well in hand for Brisbane – however, defense was an issue last year.

So key for their fortunes to take the next step is to improve the defensive aspect of their game – particularly if they opt for four import skaters – and keep pressure off their net. Helping this will be another year of growth and progression in their local D-men. Local blueliners, augmented by one or two imports has the potential to stand up and make a difference- bringing Brisbane from a middle of the table team to one which can threaten the top teams.

Something out of their control which would help will be player availability as well. 2023 saw long stretches without both their captain (Bright) and their highest scorer (McTaggart), as well as imports arriving at various stages. A bit more good fortune for new GM Ivan Rapchuk won’t be sniffed at.