Lightning’s Nikita Kucherov moves up all-time playoff leaderboard in Game 1

The Tampa Bay Lightning are taking on the Montreal Canadiens in the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Tampa and Montreal officially began their matchup on Sunday evening in Tampa. It’s been a back-and-forth game, but it’s also a notable one for Lightning superstar Nikita Kucherov.

The Lightning enjoyed a second-period blitz where they scored two goals in just 29 seconds. On the first goal, Kucherov provided an assist as defenseman Darren Raddysh tied the game. It was his first point of these playoffs, but an important point for his all-time legacy.

Kucherov is now 20th all-time in NHL history for career postseason points, the NHL acknowledged on Sunday. Kucherov has 172 career postseason points in 153 playoff games. He surpassed Peter Forsberg for the 20th spot on the all-time list.

Kucherov was a future Hall of Famer even before this feat. The Lightning superstar is one of the best playmakers of his generation. He is the fifth player in league history to record 100 assists in a single season. He achieved this feat in 2023-24, en route to a career-best 144-point campaign.

The Tampa star has also won two Stanley Cups, both with the Lightning. Ironically, one of the Stanley Cup victories came against the Canadiens in 2021. He won his first Cup in 2020 over the Dallas Stars.

It’s hard to overstate Kucherov’s impact on the ice. Every season, he continues building on a Hall of Fame resume. And he is now officially one of the best postseason performers in league history.

The post Lightning’s Nikita Kucherov moves up all-time playoff leaderboard in Game 1 appeared first on ClutchPoints.