Vitals
Player: Justin Brazeau
Born: February 2, 1998 (28 years old)
Height: 6-foot-6
Weight: 227 pounds
Hometown: New Liskeard, Ontario, Canada
Shoots: Right
Undrafted
2025-26 Regular Season Statistics: 64 games played; 17 goals; 17 assists; 34 points
Contract Status: Brazeau is under contract through 2026-27 with a cap hit of $1,500,000
Story of the Season
Brazeau entered training camp somewhere in the crowded mix of bottom-six hopefuls trying to earn roster spots.
The Penguins had plenty of questions at forward entering the
year. They needed more secondary scoring, more physicality, and more players willing to do difficult work around the net. Brazeau quietly checked several of those boxes.
Early in the season, his role fluctuated constantly.
There were nights where Brazeau barely played double-digit minutes and others where injuries forced him higher into the lineup.
At 6-foot-6, he naturally brings a different style than most of Pittsburgh’s smaller, more skilled forward group, relying more on reach and positioning than pace or speed.
Still, over time, the positives began to outweigh the negatives.
Brazeau became increasingly effective around the crease, where his size finally gave Pittsburgh a legitimate net-front option they have often lacked since the Patric Hornqvist days. Several of his goals came the same way: rebounds, deflections, or second-effort finishes generated simply by being difficult to move.
While the physical component of his game remained valuable, he also showed flashes of underrated offensive instincts, particularly during stretches alongside more skilled linemates.
There were still limitations, however. Brazeau will never have a McDavid-type burst. There were also stretches where Brazeau disappeared offensively for long stretches, something he and the team hope is an exception, not the norm heading into 2026-27.
Monthly Splits
Brazeau came out of the gate hotter than a pizza baking inside a car under the Arizona sun.
An upper-body injury forced him out of action for about a month from early November into early December, but when he hit the ice again, he looked to have picked up right where he left off.
The calendar flipped to 2026, and the goal-scoring, eventually the point totals, began to dip altogether. By the time April had rolled around, he was searching for answers and was eventually labeled as a healthy scratch as Pittsburgh’s first-round playoff series against the Flyers began.
Regular season 5v5 advanced stats
Data via Natural Stat Trick. Ranking is out of 18 forwards on the team who qualified by playing a minimum of 150 minutes.
Corsi For%: 48.88 (11th)
Goals For%: 55.41 (8th)
xGF%: 51.70 (8th)
Scoring Chance %: 49.65 (9th)
High Danger Scoring Chance%: 52.17 (8th)
5v5 on-ice shooting%: 12.69 (5th)
On-ice save%: 89.85 (9th)
Goals/60: 1.07
Assist/60: 1.15
Points/60: 2.22
When deployed in offensive-zone situations and alongside play-driving centers, he often looked effective as a complementary winger capable of extending possession and creating chaos near the crease.
The underlying numbers were not dominant, but they were respectable considering his deployment and the overall inconsistency of the Penguins’ bottom six.
Still, his physicality and willingness to engage along the boards added an element that Pittsburgh’s lineup often lacked over the last few years.
Charts n’at
Brazeau’s profile is of a limited player, or maybe better put, a more specialized one. Finishing and scoring goals is the name of his game; beyond that, he’s not pitching in a lot or in a huge role. Interestingly, his EV defense impact has been a downward trend in years past and could be worth watching for the future.
Brazeau is a very effective player for in-zone offense. He doesn’t have the hands or feet to help the puck get there, but once it does, he can use his size to muscle in towards the net, and then he’s got the hands to score goals and also build some chances.
Brazeau is a player who plays to his strengths. He’s not shooting from the outside; he’s getting in close to the net and doing his damage from near the crease.
Brazeau can be a lumbering type of skater, as to be expected to lug a 6-foot-6, 230-pound frame around the ice. His speed can be effective enough when he needs it, but he doesn’t have a very high gear.
Highlights
Questions to ponder
The biggest question surrounding Brazeau is sustainability.
Can he build on this season and become a dependable long-term middle-six forward, or was this more of a solid complementary season boosted by opportunity and the exceeding of lower expectations?
Ideal 2026-27
Assuming Brazeau is not included in some off-season trade and returns to Pittsburgh, he figures to slot into a top-nine role once again, presumably helping to anchor the third line.
If he can hit the 30-point mark and avoid the regression monster, I think everyone would consider that another successful campaign for the big brute.
Bottom line
Justin Brazeau entered 2025-26 viewed mostly as organizational depth on a team many had counted out before the preseason, and finished it looking like a legitimate NHL player.
He brought size and secondary scoring to Pittsburgh’s lineup while outperforming expectations for much of the season, comfortably looking like a legitimate top-nine forward option.
Final Grade: B-
Brazeau had a very solid first half of the season, but noticeably faded down the stretch as the Penguins were in the thick of a playoff race. For the cap hit he earns, you can’t be unimpressed with what he did when given a larger opportunity in 2025-26.
