In what was otherwise a meaningless game before beginning the playoffs, Nikita Kucherov joined rare company by becoming only the fifth player in NHL history to reach 100 assists in a season during the Tampa Bay Lightning’s 6-4 win over the Toronto Maple Leafs.
After scoring the second goal of the game and having a number of chances to achieve a rare milestone, Kucherov finally broke through. It occurred with about three minutes remaining in the second period, when he threaded a perfect pass across to Brayden Point for a powerplay goal that made it 4-1.
He joins Mario Lemieux, Wayne Gretzky, Bobby Orr and Connor McDavid as the only players to achieve this rare milestone.
Soon after Kucherov’s 100th assist was announced, earning an ovation so loud it almost took the roof off of Amalie Arena, Brandon Hagel scored on a breakaway to make it 5-1.
Nick Paul, Anthony Duclair and Tanner Jeannot each factored in the scoring for a Lightning team that had lost three of four heading into Game 82.
The Lightning played this game short handed, as top defenseman Victor Hedman was a late scratch due to illness. Luke Glendening, Haydn Fleury, Tyler Motte, Anthony Cirelli and backup goaltender Jonas Johansson also missed this game with minor injuries. The hope is that all should be ready when the Lightning open the playoffs this weekend.
With Andrei Vasilevskiy getting another rest, Matt Tomkins received another start. After falling short in a shootout loss to the Ottawa Senators six days ago, he was good in net, making 30 saves on 34 shots. In fact, he bailed the Lightning out in a couple of situations early in the middle frame with the score still tight at 2-1.
Maple Leafs star forward Auston Matthews entered the night looking to make some history of his own by scoring 70 goals. Despite a dozen or more shots on net, Tomkins and the Lightning denied him in his quest.
Next up for both teams is the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs. The Lightning face their cross state rivals, the Florida Panthers, for the third time in the last four years. That series begins Sunday, April 21 at Amerant Bank Arena in Sunrise. Puck drop is scheduled for 12:30pm EST and will be nationally televised on ESPN.
