Nikita Kucherov, Sergei Bobrovsky and Top Highlights From Feb. 12
February 13, 2019
Nikita Kucherov's week couldn't be going any better.
Two days after producing two goals and an assist for the Tampa Bay Lightning, the Russian scored once and assisted on three other tallies in his team's 6-3 win over the Calgary Flames on Tuesday.
Tampa Bay's victory moved its point total to 88, which is 13 more than the Winnipeg Jets have earned as the best team in the Western Conference.
In one of Tuesday's other marquee games, Sergei Bobrovsky earned a shutout in net for the Columbus Blue Jackets in their 3-0 win over the Washington Capitals.
Some of the other highlights from the night's 12-game slate included St. Louis' eight-goal outburst, Buffalo's home win over the New York Islanders and Arizona's road win over Vegas.
Tuesday's NHL Scores
Boston 6, Chicago 3
Buffalo 3, New York Islanders 1
Dallas 3, Florida 0
Columbus 3, Washington 0
Carolina 4, Ottawa 1
Tampa Bay 6, Calgary 3
St. Louis 8, New Jersey 3
Detroit 3, Nashville 2
Philadelphia 5, Minnesota 4
Winnipeg 4, New York Rangers 3
Toronto 5, Colorado 2
Arizona 5, Vegas 2
Kucherov Scores Through Traffic
Sportsnet @SportsnetKucherov uses the traffic to his advantage 🚙 #IceSurfing https://t.co/tXlR4DhHjk
Lightning Fast Passing Leads to Tampa Bay Goal
NHL @NHLStarts from the point, ends with @BraydenPoint19. Brilliant passing, boys. https://t.co/Gtnr7rapxC
Bobrovsky Stops Washington from Scoring
Kane Keeps Point Streak Alive
Beautiful Team Goal Finishes St. Louis' Impressive Night
Nylander's No-Look Assist
Ferland Delivers Feed from the Ice
Sportsnet @SportsnetMicheal Ferland with the feed from his backside #IceSurfing https://t.co/W492L405oj
Foligno Finishes Fast Columbus Move
Seguin Scores Off Redirection
Sportsnet @SportsnetTyler Seguin makes no mistake on the redirection 👌 #IceSurfing https://t.co/PzVIPp3vjn
Kucherov Helps Lightning Power Past Flames
The Lightning's tear toward the Presidents' Trophy continued Tuesday with their win over Calgary in which they got out to a 3-1 lead by the first intermission.
Kucherov played a key role in the fast start, as he provided an assist on Brayden Point's opening tally and then scored his 25th goal of the season to open up a three-goal advantage.
Even though the Russian's individual play has stood out over the past two games, he ranked the wins as the most important accomplishments, per the team's official Twitter account:
Tampa Bay Lightning @TBLightningKucherov when asked about his seven points in his last two games: “Good to see we got two games with Ws. That’s better.” #CGYvsTBL
The 25-year-old's teammates were more than complimentary of his performance, as Point praised his playmaking ability, per the Lightning's Twitter account:
Tampa Bay Lightning @TBLightningPoint on Kucherov’s four-point night: “The amount of plays he makes, the amount of chances he creates, he’s bound to get points.” #CGYvsTBL
With his three assists Tuesday, Kucherov eclipsed his previous career high for assists in a single season, as he now sits at 63.
He is expected to blow past his career-high point total of 100 from a year ago, as he has 88 points through 57 games for the league's best team.
Columbus Stays 3rd in Metropolitan with Shutout
Bobrovsky's shutout allowed the Blue Jackets to remain in third place in the Metropolitan Division.
The victory kept the Columbus two points ahead of the Pittsburgh Penguins, who hold a one-point lead in the race for the final wild-card position.
Bobrovsky came up big when he had to, as he made 20 saves, but the Columbus goalie was more impressed with the play of the skaters in front of him, per the team's official Twitter account:
Columbus Blue Jackets @BlueJacketsNHL"In all components the guys did an unbelievable job." - @SergeiBobrovsky https://t.co/CZMEjAhrEJ
"The guys played unbelievable in front of me," he said. "They didn't allow them anything."
Columbus is in possession of the Eastern Conference's longest winning streak at four games, and it has an opportunity to extend that run to five games at home on Thursday against the New York Islanders.
Every point is crucial for the Blue Jackets because one slip could drop them into the wild-card positions, where four teams are separated by six points for the final playoff berth.
Wednesday's NHL Schedule
Edmonton at Pittsburgh (8 p.m. ET, NBCSN)
Vancouver at Anaheim (10:30 p.m. ET, ESPN+)
Follow Joe on Twitter, @JTansey90.
2019 NHL Trade Deadline Tracker
Who's moving before Feb. 25?