Kucherov has become one of the most dangerous offensive players in the NHL. He had his first 30-goal season in 2015-16, bumped that up to 40 goals in 2016-17, then finished third in the NHL in scoring in 2017-18 with 100 points (39 goals, 61 assists), helping the Tampa Bay Lightning win the Atlantic Division. But those were just a prelude to 2018-19, when he led the NHL with 128 points (41 goals, 87 assists), setting a single-season record for points by a player born in Russia. He led all players in scoring during the 2020 Stanley Cup Playoffs with 34 points (seven goals, 27 assists), helping the Lightning win their first championship since 2004. After missing the entire 2020-21 regular season recovering from hip surgery, Kucherov returned to score 32 points (eight goals, 24 assists) in 23 playoff games to help the Lightning win a second straight Stanley Cup title. He led the playoffs in points (32) with 19 of them coming on the power play to become the sixth player to lead the postseason in scoring without a tie in consecutive seasons, the first since Mario Lemieux (1991-92). Wayne Gretzky (1987-88), Rick MacLeish (1974-75), Phil Esposito (1969-70) and Howie Morenz (1924-25) are the others. He and Lightning center Brayden Point, and Wayne Gretzky and Jari Kurri (Edmonton Oilers) are the only teammates to lead the playoffs in points and goals in consecutive postseasons. Kucherov reached the 700-point milestone in his 621st NHL game with a goal and an assist in a 7-3 loss at the Pittsburgh Penguins on Feb. 26, 2023. He was the fourth Lightning skater to achieve the mark and required the fewest games in team history, besting Steven Stamkos (696). He also was the fastest to do so among players selected after the first round in the NHL Draft since Pavel Bure (619) on Dec. 15, 2001. Kucherov became the fifth player in NHL history, and the second of the 2023-24 season, to have 100 assists in a season when he set up Brayden Point’s power-play goal at 17:05 of the second period in a 6-4 victory against the Toronto Maple Leafs at Amalie Arena on April 17, 2024. He joined Gretzky (11 times), Lemieux (1988-89), Bobby Orr (1970-71) and Connor McDavid (2023-24). He led the NHL with 144 points in 81 games and was nominated for the Hart Trophy given to the most valuable player in the NHL. A second-round pick (No. 58) by the Lightning in the 2011 NHL Draft, Kucherov has played like a first-round talent. He won the Art Ross Trophy as the top scorer in the NHL in 2018-19 with 128 points (41 goals, 87 assists), the most in a single season by a player born in Russia, and was voted winner of the Hart and Ted Lindsay trophies. Though Kucherov got off to a slow start in 2019-20, he ended the season with 85 points (33 goals, 52 assists) in 68 games. After being drafted by the Lightning, the 5-foot-11 forward from Moscow spent the 2011-12 season in Russia, then came to North America and played in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League in 2012-13. Kucherov began 2013-14 with Syracuse of the American Hockey League, but he wasn’t there for long. After putting up 24 points (13 goals, 11 assists) in 17 AHL games, he was called up by the Lightning on Nov. 24, 2013. In his NHL debut the next night against the New York Rangers, Kucherov scored on the first shot of the first shift of his NHL career, beating Henrik Lundqvist in the first period. Kucherov finished his rookie season with 18 points (nine goals, nine assists) in 52 games but was a frequent healthy scratch in the final weeks of the season and appeared in two of Tampa Bay’s four playoff games. Since then, however, Kucherov has been among the Lightning’s most consistent players. Kucherov broke out in 2014-15, finishing with 65 points (29 goals, 36 assists) and tying Max Pacioretty of the Montreal Canadiens for the NHL lead in plus-minus at plus-38. He followed that with 22 points (10 goals, 12 assists), including two overtime goals, in 22 Stanley Cup Playoff games, helping the Lightning reach the Final before losing to the Chicago Blackhawks in six games. After scoring 30 goals and 66 points in 2015-16, Kucherov scored 11 goals in 17 playoff games to help the Lightning reach Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Final before losing to the Penguins. He became the third player in NHL history to score at least 10 goals in multiple playoff years before turning 23, joining Jeremy Roenick (1990 and 1992 with the Blackhawks) and Evgeni Malkin (2008 and 2009 with the Penguins). Kucherov became a 40-goal scorer in 2016-17 and earned an NHL Second-Team All-Star berth after finishing with 85 points. He was named a First-Team All-Star in 2017-18 after becoming the third player in Lightning history to finish with at least 100 points in a season (39 goals, 61 assists) and finishing third in the NHL in scoring. Kucherov also had 17 points (seven goals, 10 assists) in 17 playoff games as the Lightning advanced to Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Final before losing to the Washington Capitals. Another big season in 2018-19 helped the Lightning match the NHL single-season record of 62 victories, set by the Detroit Red Wings in 1995-96. Kucherov finished seventh in the NHL in scoring in 2019-20 before helping the Lightning win the Cup for the first time since 2004.