The 30-year-old Russian is now the leader in the scoring race in the entire NHL, determines the results of matches and is in such form that he makes even skeptics talk about himself with enthusiasm. Kucherov renews one statistical achievement after another and is the main contender not only for the Art Ross Trophy, awarded to the best scorer in the regular season, but also for the main personal trophy of the season – the Hart Trophy. This award recognizes the season’s Most Valuable Player (MVP).
Last night, Tampa hosted the Pittsburgh Penguins at home. Most recently, in a game against the Lightning, media attention was drawn to Penguins goalie Tristan Jerry, who managed to score the puck and become one of 14 goal-scoring goalies in the NHL. Then hockey fans talked about him for a few days, but now Kucherov has truly overshadowed him.
- Cooler than Vasilevsky and Kucherov. Pittsburgh goaltender makes NHL history
Nikita already in the sixth minute helped Anthony Cirelli to open the score in the match. This allowed the Russian to extend his goal streak to 11 matches. It is noteworthy that in each of the last 11 matches, Kucherov became the author of an assist at least once. No one in Tampa history had ever done this before.
And midway through the second period, Kuch wrote his name into NHL history once again when he converted the majority and allowed Tampa to extend their lead. At that time, Nikita had 44 points for his performance in less than 26 matches this season. This allowed him to have the best start to a season in the NHL of any winger in the 21st century. Interestingly, he shot the puck from the right throw-in circle, as if he was spotting Alexander Ovechkin’s goals from his “office.”
As a result, “Tampa” confidently led the match with “Pittsburgh” to victory (3:1), and the only problem was the missed puck by another Russian Andrei Vasilevsky. The “Big Cat” needed 53 seconds to achieve a second consecutive shutout. Returning to Kucherov, I would like to note that Nikita is now rushing below 100 points in a season for the fourth time and will also claim personal and national records. In the 2018/2019 season, he scored 128 (41+87) points using the goal+pass system, surpassing Alexander Mogilny. It’s clear that Kucherov is still very far from Wayne Gretzky’s record numbers, but in the Canadiens’ era, hockey was different and they play different roles – Gretzky was a center forward and Kucherov was a winger.
After the game, Tampa head coach John Cooper didn’t get modest when talking about Kucherov’s performance:
— There are many excellent hockey players in the NHL. I mean, the best in the world. But I think right now, after just over 20 games this season, you all should put Kucherov at the top of that mountain. Nikita plays at an elite level. That’s all I can say about him“, Cooper said in an interview with the Lightning press service.
Every month, Kucherov, with his game, more and more convinces experts that he is ready to compete with the main Russian stars of the NHL – Alexander Ovechkin and Evgeni Malkin. Nikita’s journey to North America and subsequent career is very different from how Ovi and Gino found success. Alexander and Evgeniy arrived in the NHL as their teams’ top prospects (the first and second picks in the 2004 NHL Draft), making themselves publicly known at the youth level. No one doubts that Ovechkin and Malkin will definitely find their place in the NHL Hall of Fame, and jerseys bearing their names will hang under the arches of the arenas in Washington and Pittsburgh.
But Kucherov was only selected 58th overall in the 2011 NHL Draft and was not rated highly by any scouting agency. However, his work, his constant surpassing himself and his confidence in his own strength made him a real star. He now has two Stanley Cups, numerous personal awards and he is only 30 years old. If he doesn’t slow down, he could become the face of the entire league in the next 5-6 years. If one can only dream of such a development of events now, then one should be sure of one thing: at the end of his career, Kucherov will also enter the Hall of Fame and be named among the five best players Russians who played in the NHL.
Nikita Serbakov, Athletistic
Source: Sport
I’m Emma Smith, a dedicated journalist and avid storyteller. I have been writing for news websites for the past 5 years, reporting on hockey news and delivering in-depth analysis of the sport. In my current role as Author at Athletistic, I write about hockey events from around the world to keep followers up-to-date with what’s happening in the sport.
