- Nikita Kucherov scored on a breakaway to reach 1,137 career points with Tampa Bay
- That ties Steven Stamkos for the most points in Lightning history
- Read below for how the night unfolded and when he can take the record outright
Nikita Kucherov has tied Steven Stamkos for the Lightning’s all-time points record.
The Tampa Bay winger got there Tuesday night in a 6-2 win over the Vegas Golden Knights, finishing with a goal and two assists. He now sits at 1,137 points, the same number Stamkos left with. Per NHL.com’s recap, Kucherov has 405 goals and 732 assists in 888 games with the Lightning.
The record-tying point came on a breakaway just over five minutes into the third period. Kucherov poked the puck away from Jeremy Lauzon at the Tampa Bay blue line, took off the other way and beat Carter Hart to the blocker side. It was the sixth and final goal of the night for the Lightning.
Our clip shows the whole thing, from the steal to the finish. Kucherov never really looked rushed. He waited out Hart, gave one small shift of the stick and buried it.
The league’s own account marked the moment right away too:
Kucherov needed three points to tie it and had them by the middle of the third. He set up Brandon Hagel and Anthony Cirelli earlier in the game. Cirelli finished with two goals, and Victor Hedman and John Carlson also scored for Tampa Bay. Andrei Vasilevskiy made 32 saves.
Stamkos, now with the Nashville Predators, played 1,082 games to get his 1,137 points, so Kucherov is getting there almost 200 games sooner. We covered the chase when he sat four points back.
Kucherov has 13 points through nine games this season after winning the Hart Trophy last year with 130 points. Martin St. Louis (953), Vincent Lecavalier (874) and Hedman (814) round out the top five on the franchise list, per Daily Faceoff.
His first chance to take the record outright comes Friday, when the Lightning visit the Colorado Avalanche. One more point makes him the franchise’s leading scorer.
