Kucherov's Accomplishment Years in the Making
By Mike Smith | Thunderstruck Sports
Growing up in Moscow, Russia, Nikita Kucherov dreamed of playing in a vaguely known foreign organization he had only heard about: the National Hockey League. He idolized Russian players like Sergei Fedorov, part of Detroit's "Russian Five" in the 1990s. Today, Kucherov is one of the league's premier players, setting a standard for future players, whether they're from Russia, North America, or anywhere there is a sheet of ice and a dream to play hockey, and play it well.
Now, he stands alone atop the Tampa Bay Lightning's all-time points standings.
Kucherov added to his litany of accolades over the weekend, surpassing former Bolt great Steven Stamkos for all-time scoring with 1,138 points (405G, 733A). Stamkos had held the record since April 2022, when he surpassed Martin St. Louis with his 954th point.
The only disappointment was that earning the mark came in a loss to the Utah Mammoth at the Delta Center in overtime, 5-4. Kucherov has never been a fan of losing, and Saturday night was no exception.
"That's fine," Kucherov said after the game about breaking the record. "I mean, we just lost the game. Tough one. I don't even know what to think."
Although the Lightning couldn't secure a win, Kucherov still took a moment to appreciate the teammates who helped him reach the top.
"But it means a lot. I appreciate everyone who played with me and been part of it. It means a lot."
Kucherov and Stamkos: The Combo That Led To This Moment
When Stamkos left the organization in 2024, he left with 555 goals and 582 assists in 1,082 games.
Kucherov eclipsed Stamkos in only 890 games.
The pair combined for 300 goals in 604 games from Kucherov's 2013 entry into the league to Stamkos's 2024 departure for Nashville. Over that period, the two played 107 playoff games together and won two consecutive Stanley Cups.
His admiration for his time playing with the Lightning's former captain remains strong.
“He's been really good on and off the ice, and he's the reason why I have so many points," Kucherov said on the impact Stamkos had on him and his career. "He's been putting them in the net so many times, and I had such a great time playing with him and having him on the power play. He's been a big part of my success, and I can't thank him enough. He’s just a great guy.”
From "Too Small" to "Dimitri" to the Nikita Kucherov Known Today
As more Russian players migrated to North America after the Soviet Union's collapse, youngsters like Kucherov began their careers by shadowing the players who pioneered the movement to the NHL.
Kucherov began playing hockey when his mother, Svetlana, started working at an ice rink in Moscow and brought five-year-old Nikita along. Working with Russian coach Gennady Kurdin until he was 16, Kucherov learned not only how to play hockey, but how to think hockey.
His time with Kurdin developed the hockey IQ Kucherov is now well-renowned for.
From there, Kucherov starred on Russia's 2011 U-18 World Championship team, led the tournament with 11 goals and 21 points, and helped claim bronze.
Despite his creativity and high hockey IQ, scouts deemed Kucherov too small, too skinny, and too slow to be a legitimate NHL threat.
That didn't stop the Tampa Bay Lightning from drafting him with the 58th overall pick in the second round of the 2011 NHL draft.
To adapt to North American hockey, he moved to Canada to play major junior hockey for the Rouyn-Noranda Huskies in the QMJHL. He signed his three-year entry-level contract with the Bolts on September 10, 2012.
Kucherov made his NHL debut on November 25, 2013, against the New York Rangers. As a sign of things to come, he scored on his first shift and first career shot against Hockey Hall of Fame goaltender Henrik Lundqvist.
Then-Lightning announcer Rick Peckham was so excited by the rookie's first-shift goal that he accidentally called him "Dimitri," which became a joke that still lives in the hallways of Benchmark International Arena.
'Dimitri' quickly grew into the Nikita Kucherov that the league knows today.
He broke out playing alongside Tyler Johnson and Ondrej Palat on Tampa Bay's famous "Triplets" line, and helped lead the Lightning to the 2015 Stanley Cup Finals.
“I’ve had the pleasure of watching every one of those points,” Lightning coach Jon Cooper said. “You look at the list of the players that have played here—Steven Stamkos, Martin St. Louis, Vinny Lecavalier, Victor Hedman, guys that have their names in the rafters—and he stands alone."
“…That’s over a decade of work of what he’s done. He’s going to go down as one of the all-time greats.”
Lightning Strikes More Than Once with Kucherov
1,138 points later, and Kucherov is an institution in Tampa Bay. Revered for his hockey prowess, idolized by Bolts fans young and old.
His teammates stand in awe of him and know they are playing alongside someone very special.
"His work ethic, his dedication to the game, and his dedication to perfection have always been there,” Lightning captain Victor Hedman said. “I’ve seen him the past five, six years and the way he works and tries to improve. The way he sees the game is fun to watch.”
Kucherov moved past Hedman for most assists in Lightning history during the 2024-25 season.
Kucherov now holds 18 franchise records and ranks second in several others, including career goals, career game-winning goals, career 40-goal seasons, and career multi-goal games.
“You’ve always got to be ready when ‘Kuch’ has it,” Lightning center Brayden Point said. “We all know that, and he puts a pass on my stick and lays it there for me, and I’m just able to whack it in."
When Point scored the goal that gave Kucherov the record, he couldn't help but feel the moment's magnitude.
“It took me a second (to realize it) and then, obviously, so happy for Kuch,’ Point said. “He works so hard, and he leads this team with his work ethic. He’s passed some great players who have played with us. And to see him work at it and get it, no one’s more deserving than he is.”
It was the 351st time Kucherov and Point have combined for a goal, and it won't be the last.
“He has accumulated a ton of points in his career. That’s what he does,” Lightning coach Jon Cooper said. “He’s a special talent, and guys like him don’t come around very often. He’s given our fans at home a decade of pretty awesome performances.”
Kucherov has six 100-point seasons, including four straight starting with the 2022-23 season. Despite his success, the future Hall of Famer keeps a relatively low profile and shies away from the spotlight.
“When guys meet Kuch for the first time, there's a little bit of the awe factor of, ‘This is Nikita Kucherov’. I think we're all blessed and awed by his skill,” Cooper said. “But off the ice he’s quiet, stays to himself, does what you ask, and gives everything he has on the ice. He's just a great guy to have around."
"I think there's a reason we've had some success in the past decade and a half, and one of the big reasons is Kuch.”
From Russia, With Skates
Two Hart Trophies, Back-to-Back Stanley Cups, multiple 100-point seasons, and more.
Not too bad for a kid from Maykop, Russia, who grew up in Moscow, once sharing a pair of skates three sizes too big with his brother, Denis, hoping to make a name for himself as the Russian Five did in Detroit.
“You don’t want to watch robots play hockey,” Igor Larianov, one of the Russian Five, said of Kucherov in 2019. “You want hockey players to play hockey, and that’s what Kucherov is all about. You can’t put a lid on him and tell him there’s only one way....Kucherov is doing things you can’t really stop."
"You try to shadow this guy, try to put a guy against him, but when you have players around him like Point or Stamkos or Hedman, they can do some amazing stuff moving the puck and making decisions split-second when nobody expects. That’s the game Kucherov and Tampa Bay play, and it’s fun to watch.”
“He sees the game. He sees ahead of things, knows what he wants to do. If the situation changes on the ice, he sees it," Federov said of Kucherov as he won his first Hart Trophy. "He’s already got the answer: how to beat this guy, how to pass the puck, where his partners can really score and make another pass for the good shot.”
Kucherov needs only 42 points to pass his childhood hero, Fedorov, for third most by a Russian-born NHLer all time.
“The evolution of the player (Kucherov) has been really remarkable,” Larionov said. “The way he gets better. The way he plays the game. The way he thinks the game. And the way he controls the speed and tempo. He gets better every year, every month, every game."
And Kucherov has several years, plenty of months, and many games left to grow.
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