Kucherov continues destroying the NHL! He again pushed aside the legends and Tampa finally won
Vladimir Laevsky February 25, 2024, 00:55 Moscow time Audio version: Your browser does not support the audio element.
Nikita also joined the search for Matthews and McDavid!
The fight for the playoffs in the NHL enters its most interesting stage. Now each match can give you the opportunity to get the coveted ticket or steal it.
“Tampa” recently unexpectedly lost to “Washington”, a direct rival in the fight for the playoffs, and let the “capitals” get very close. The series of defeats lasted up to three games.
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Ovechkin makes history again! Defeat NHL legends and Washington beat Kucherov’s Tampa
And the Lightning’s next opponent was Ilya Sorokin’s Islanders. New York is also still fighting for eighth place in the same Eastern Conference. That is, the teams literally played the game for four points.
The exit was left in the hands of Tampa. Already in the fifth minute, Sorokin deflected the shot, but the puck flew into the area, where Nick Paul was the most effective (1:0).
You can watch the video on the official NHL website. Video rights belong to NHL Enterprises, LP.
Just 16 seconds later, the Islanders tied the game on a goal from Bo Horvat. However, the referees went to watch a video review and recorded Anders Lee as offside as he entered the zone. Cancel!
From that moment, only 66 seconds have passed and the lightning has already struck! Nikita Kucherov received the puck on the blue line and fired. At first the goal was credited to Brayden Point, but then it was returned to the Russian striker!
You can watch the video on the official NHL website. Video rights belong to NHL Enterprises, LP.
For Kucherov, this goal became the 37th of the season: he moved into third place, overtaking David Pastrnak, and continued chasing Auston Matthews. Nikita also scored the 96th point and was three points ahead of Nathan MacKinnon.
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At the beginning of the second half, Rayo scored their third goal. Point burst into the zone and, by some miracle, was able to throw the puck past his opponents several times and save it. Braden threw it to Kucherov, Nikita returned it, threw it and 3-0! The puck slowly slid toward Sorokin’s “house.”
You can watch the video on the official NHL website. Video rights belong to NHL Enterprises, LP.
Thanks to this, Kucherov scored his 97th point of the season! Additionally, Nikita became the second hockey player this season to give 60+ assists and moved closer to Connor McDavid on the list of best assists (66 vs. 60).
Midway through the third period, Islanders coach Patrick Roy decided to take a desperate step: having the opportunity to play on the power play, he eliminated the goalkeeper. And it even bore fruit! In the 54th minute, Anders Lee pulled one back.
You can watch the video on the official NHL website. Video rights belong to NHL Enterprises, LP.
In the 58th minute, the Tampa fans were completely scared – the Islanders scored the second goal! This time it was Brock Nelson who tried. 3:2!
You can watch the video on the official NHL website. Video rights belong to NHL Enterprises, LP.
But Tampa finally put pressure on the Islanders. Luke Glendening scored into an empty net and Nikita Kucherov scored the third point of the game! This match was the 82nd of his career with 3+ points; According to this indicator, he surpassed the legendary Alex Delvecchio, Dennis Maruc and Pierre LaRouche.
The Lightning finally snapped their losing streak and regained their status as top playoff contenders in the Eastern Conference. Andrey Vasilevsky helped his team a lot this time. And Kucherov continued to separate himself from Nathan MacKinnon in the scoring race.
