Four seasons removed from capturing the Hart Trophy, Tampa Bay Lighting star Nikita Kucherov is making an early case to win it again.Â
On Friday, Kucherov equaled a franchise record, tallying six points in the Lightning’s 8-2 thrashing of the Carolina Hurricanes. Kucherov ties the Lightning mark set by Doug Crossman during the team’s inaugural season in 1992-93.Â
With the Lightning trailing the Hurricanes 1-0 through one period, Kucherov helped them come alive in the second, scoring his 14th goal of the season while assisting on two others to give Tampa Bay a 3-2 lead after two. Then, in the final period, Kucherov repeated his second-period feat as the Lightning pulled away with a five-goal third. Â Â Â