2024-25 Season Spotlight: Anthony Cirelli
Building an undeniable case
Whether or not you agree with the criterion, production matters in the Selke Trophy conversation. Anthony Cirelli has cracked the top five in voting twice but never the top three because he couldn’t hang with the big dogs (Aleksander Barkov, Patrice Bergeron, Anze Kopitar) on the scoresheet.
Until now.
Pacing for 65-plus points for the first time in his eight-year career, the pivot may well be holding the pole position in 2024-25. Oddly enough, further sharpening his stellar off-puck play has lit the offensive fuse. Here’s how.
Puck Support
In his final couple of seasons in Tampa Bay, Steven Stamkos’ PP production masked serious 5-on-5 limitations. Frankly, he was a straight-up liability at EV, often failing to reach his spot in time to carry his weight.
This forced frequent linemate Cirelli into “chicken with its head cut off” mode. He would scramble across the ice to plug holes that his former captain (and occasionally Alex Killorn) had left unattended, and while he was a good all-hustle center, leaks were inevitable under such circumstances—particularly against the cream of the crop.
In 2024-25, his revolving door at RW (Conor Geekie, Nikita Kucherov, Nick Paul) somehow constitutes a major step up in three-zone support. As a result, he no longer appears stretched thin in puck pursuit. He’s been afforded the luxury of playing a slightly slower, more cerebral game.
That’s revealed sensational chemistry with mad lad Brandon Hagel:
Look, he still works his tail off. However, he now deploys his energy in spurts instead of racing from one fire to the next. This calculated approach, in tandem with his LW’s inhuman motor, has handed the Lightning one of the foremost forechecking units in hockey. Hagel’s honey-badger tendencies make waves, whereas Cirelli swoops in to steady the current. Their two-man designs can make you feel as though there’s nowhere to hide.
Even if Hagel (TB 38) can’t reclaim the puck himself, pushing you into a suboptimal play (rim, off-target pass, etc.) leads to the same outcome when Cirelli’s (TB 71) around:
The 27-year-old is finely attuned to Hagel’s effect on the opposition, constantly getting the jump on its next move to extend OZ possessions. And as a stellar skater himself (92nd percentile among forwards), he feels comfortable inching deeper as the F2 to beat nearby checks to the puck without compromising his defensive responsibilities.
Speaking of defense, he’s also adept at shifting to F3 and flowing back toward the blue line. This benefits Tampa Bay in two important ways:
Keeps a lid on counterattacks.
Enables Lightning D-men to pinch in good conscience.
Pay attention to his path in these clips. Rather than retreating in a straight line, he shades toward the strong side to combine forechecking support and defensive solidity. Almost like magic, the puck just…presents itself to him.
Striking this balance between F2 and F3 duty is no easy task, but Cirelli has never filled the gaps so effectively for the Lightning.
It’s not like his hustle has disappeared either. He waits for the proper opportunity to weaponize it. When possession boils down to a 50/50 race, he remains a handful around the puck, overwhelming his counterpart through sheer activity. The Bruins had a front-row seat to this show on Jan. 14:
The hallmarks of a high-end duelist are all there. The pace, the stick work, the nose for the puck, the low and wide stance, the insistence on digging his lead shoulder ahead of yours, etc. Although a second-man-in role suits him best, he can serve as a tenacious F1 and dependable F3 as well.
Consequently, the Lightning never enjoy more zone time than during his shifts (15th leaguewide in xGF/60):
The opposition’s margin for error becomes razor thin when he’s on the ice. Unless your breakout is pristine, Cirelli’s smarts and Hagel’s wheels will spring their trap and flip possession on repeat.
Defense
Forechecking isn’t the only phase of his game that’s gaining from a slower tack. Where Cirelli once sprinted across every inch of the DZ, he’s focused his sights on protecting the house this season. Traveling shorter distances and prioritizing the slot means he’s more than merely industrious. He’s hyper-stingy.
As the F3, he converges on puck-carriers early and heads them off at the pass. Down low, he stops at the net to ensure that the guts of the ice stay clean.
Opponents may enjoy the occasional Grade A chance—that’s the nature of life as a matchup center—but they’ll need to earn them by going through him. Nothing easy, which obviously makes Andrei Vasilevskiy’s job considerably easier:
Both in transition and in coverage, he displays an innate feel for middle-ice lanes and seldom strays too far from them. Forwards may attempt to draw him out to the perimeter—thereby placing weaker defenders in prime real estate—but he’s developed a keen sense of boundaries. It’s like he has his own set of guidelines painted on the ice, and they determine the extent of his pursuit.
Cross them, and he’ll withdraw to safety until you’re ready to challenge him on his turf. His terms. Such stubbornness will frustrate the majority of offenses. Jack Hughes (NJ 86) certainly didn’t appreciate it on Jan. 11:
New Jersey runs a high pick play in hopes of exploiting Tampa Bay’s coverage. Given Hughes’ skating and puck-carrying ability, Cirelli opting to slide under or curl over Jonas Siegenthaler (NJ 71) would afford the star center a viable route downhill. The Lightning’s 2C chooses neither poison, braking shy of the pick to remain in a sound containment position.
Hughes then tries to coax Cirelli into cutting a tight angle over Hagel. He declines once more, sagging toward the top of the circle. Without any over-extension from the defense, the Devils ultimately skate themselves into trouble and cough the puck up.
His discipline manifests itself at the point of attack too:
Following a turnover, Hughes and Ondrej Palat (NJ 18) initiate a give-and-go in order to pull Cirelli away from the one-timer option (Hughes). He doesn’t bite, clinging to the bigger threat while keeping his stick pointed toward the heart of the ice. A would-be glorious opportunity is reduced to a contested backhand.
Hughes couldn’t free himself of Cirelli on the PP either:
A rebound off a slot shot is ripe for a temporary blip, yet he zeroes in on his assignment (weak-side flanker), mirroring Hughes’ movement before chipping the loose puck to himself in the corner.
Since Cirelli isn’t the type of defender to stroll up and steal the puck from you outright (e.g. Pavel Datsyuk), his impact isn’t eye-catching. He simply beefs up Tampa Bay’s resistance at home plate, discouraging you from even trying your luck there. It’s little surprise, then, that opponents can’t muster much against him:
In-zone offensive success usually requires the first domino to fall. Cirelli doesn’t. He refuses to be the weak link. As such, he’s surrendering the second-fewest expected goals on the team while absorbing its toughest minutes.
Net-Front Offense
Quick recap: He’s minimizing danger in the DZ, maximizing OZ time and establishing a brilliant rapport with Hagel. Is it any wonder that his offensive numbers have perked up (38 points in 45 games)?
Skill-wise, he remains a meat-and-potatoes 2C who’s at his worst when he leans on finesse. Keep it simple:
Defer to the team’s playmakers.
Drive to the net.
Prepare to tip/fire the puck at a moment’s notice.
That’s been his M.O. for a while, but his forechecking and defense are tendering him far more chances to flex it this season. In fairness, he has refined one area of his somewhat limited game: net-front offense. Rather than plopping a warm body near the goaltender and calling it a day, he’s become craftier in tight:
I’ve slowed these clips down to highlight his body orientation and proactive stick placement. Much like a boxer can win an engagement before throwing a punch by obtaining the dominant angle, Cirelli claims the upper hand by holding his twig up and out (away from his frame = even further away from the defender’s grasp) and lowering it in sync with a point shot or slot pass.
Seeing as crease-clearers are a dying breed, his stick is regularly first on the scene. That availability has produced sparkling close-range metrics:
Again, peep the SH%. This isn’t the story of a defensive pivot who suddenly discovered top-six talent. He’s a passable finisher whose volume of HD chances has exploded in 2024-25.
Give most 2Cs enough kicks at the can, and they’ll hit pay dirt.
Cirelli has logged ~200 minutes with Kucherov at 5-on-5. He’s no longer strictly a matchup center, and he’s providing Tampa Bay with crucial scoring depth as it aims to clinch a playoff berth in the East.
In the process, he’s delivering the all-around performances that have long swayed Selke voters. He’s right at the front of the pack.