In the hockey community, two characters tend to stand out among the world's best players: Connor McDavid and Nathan MacKinnon. Active discussions have been going on over the past few years about which of these Canadians is more skilled and cooler. Of course, not as fiercely as between fans of the talent of Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, but still. Sometimes Leon Draisaitl appears in the background of this couple. However, this season things have finally changed in the right direction.
Nikita Kucherov has long been a source of fear throughout the NHL, but not enough is said about the Russian forward. Especially in comparison with the same McDavid and MacKinnon. Perhaps the whole point is that Kucherov himself avoids unnecessary hype in the media. However, it is impossible to deprive the Russian of attention, otherwise it will be a crime against hockey. Nikita is one of those people whom other players should set as an example. For the simple reason that Kucherov does absolutely phenomenal things on the court. His vision of the game, actions on the ice and attitude towards work and training are a true indicator of professionalism. And, of course, the Russian’s performance attracts special attention. Nikita is constantly working on himself, he has raised the bar so high that sometimes you doubt that a person is in principle capable of such a thing. Kuch is like an alien, and his hockey is outer space.
The same MacKinnon indirectly forces Kucherov to improve with each game. Nikita himself, of course, doesn’t pay attention to the glasses. The Russian only cares about the team’s results. But the overall picture is such that the Canadian forward “Colorado”, without meaning to, seems to provoke Nikita to new achievements. MacKinnon recently surpassed Kucherov on the list of top scorers of the NHL season. As it turned out, not for long at all.
In today's match against the Philadelphia Flyers, the Russian leader of Tampa quickly won back the gap from MacKinnon, and then completely regained the lead in the scoring standings. But how!
Nikita Kucherov showed his sniper skills and scored a hat-trick — the first of the season and the fifth of his career in the NHL championships. It’s interesting that the last time a Russian scored three goals in one regular season game was just over two years ago. In January 2022, he destroyed the Buffalo Sabers. And today he did the same with Philadelphia.
Kucherov's goals suited every taste. At first he distinguished himself when playing in equal strength. Formally, of course, Tampa had the majority, but they managed to score after the Flyers’ hockey player had entered the court. Kucherov tried to shoot through the goal with a wrist shot, but it was blocked. The next wave was followed by a proprietary one-timer, so powerful that the grid barely remained intact.
Soon Nikita managed to officially realize the majority. The Philadelphia players got dizzy during Tampa's combination attack, which is why everyone suddenly forgot about Kucherov. But Nikita plays in both special teams. The Russian spotted the puck at the far post and sent it into the goal without any obstacles. Thanks to this goal, Nikita scored his 300th career point in the NHL championships on the power play and became the 12th Russian hockey player in the history of the league to reach this mark. Later, he scored the 301st point, distinguishing himself with an assist during the next power play, and by this indicator he surpassed Vyacheslav Kozlov.
And at the very end of the meeting, Kucherov scored a hat-trick, scoring into an empty net. The faces of Philadelphia fans from such a performance by a Russian are more valuable than any words. They seem to say: “What are you going to do, huh? How to stop him?” But no way. Kuch is mighty.
For Kucherov, this match was already the 25th in his career in the NHL championships, in which he scored 4 points or more. Among active players in the league, only Sidney Crosby (38 matches), Connor McDavid (35), Alexander Ovechkin (32), Evgeni Malkin (29) and Leon Draisaitl (25) have as many or more caps. Thanks to these four points, Tampa's Russian forward became the first among all league players to reach the 80-point mark this season. In just 47 championship matches, he scored 31 goals and made 49 assists.
Phenomenal. Amazing. This is exactly what Nikita’s inner circle is talking about.
- «It's a pleasure to watch him play every night. He's worth the money, that's for sure. Amazing player. Unique. Elite. I don't even know what else to say about him. I'm running out of words,» Tampa Bay head coach said. » John Cooper.
- «He's incredible. He's a lot of fun to watch. A lot of us are better people because of Nikita. Not just because he provides us with broadcasts and helps us score. But also because of what he shows us in training. We just watch him, being close, and it really helps our game,” added American Lightning forward Mikey Eissimont, who scored today from Kucherov’s pass
Behind all the achievements of the Russian forward there is a huge amount of work. But from the outside it looks like the game is very easy for Nikita. He supposedly solved all the possible mysteries and puzzles of hockey, took over the entire NHL and made it his own league. He is the NHL. It is a great privilege to witness the phenomenal performance of a Russian genius in real time.
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