There have been ups and downs in the race to the lead, and now Nikita Kucherov has overtaken Connor McDavid in this battle. The showdown between two of the NHL’s brightest superstars delivered exactly what fans expected.

On Saturday, the Tampa Bay Lightning took on the Edmonton Oilers. That means a head-to-head battle between Nikita Kucherov and McDavid. After scoring 4 points, Kucherov overtakes the Oilers captain, McDavid, in the scoring lead.

Kucherov scored two goals and two assists, and with that, his points tally moves to 118. Connor McDavid was behind now, with 116 points. Lightning won the game 5-2 against the Oilers at Rogers Place.

After the game, Kucherov praised the whole team and talked about the execution of the game plan, which helped the team to pull off this win. “I think it’s a whole team effort. The team’s been playing well, and we follow the game plan, and we execute plays, and that is paying off,” Kucherov said.

Nikita Kucherov Helped the Lightning Secure a Win Over the Oilers

The game started with the Oilers taking a lead after McDavid scored a goal in the first period. The crowd momentum was with Edmonton at that time. But the Lightning made a strong comeback in the second period. 

Lightning scored 3 goals in the second phase. Nikita Kucherov scored his first shorthanded goal in his career. In the final phase, Lightning and Oilers scored one goal each. But it was the Lightning who took the game away from the Oilers. 

After the game, Edmonton’s coach Kris Knoblauch talked about the opportunity that his team missed to tie the game.

“We had an opportunity to tie the game on the 5-on-3 with a minute-plus, two really good chances, one going off the goalpost, then we can't give up that short-handed goal for the two-goal lead against the best defensive team in the league,” Kris said. 

It is now Lightning’s third consecutive victory. Nikita Kucherov has moved into the top spot in NHL points. He amassed 12 points (six goals and six assists) during his previous three games, putting him at 118 points. 

He has surpassed Connor McDavid, who was in the number one spot before Kucherov with 116 points (38 goals and 78 assists). Kucherov’s red-hot streak, including multiple multi-point games in recent outings, has positioned him as the frontrunner in the race for the NHL scoring title.

Let’s see how much he will finish by the end of the season. What’s your prediction? Comment down below.

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Written by

Kapil Manghnani

Edited by

Shraabona Sengupta