Nikita Kucherov Ties Steven Stamkos' Lightning Points Record as Tampa Bay Routs Golden Knights 6-2

Nikita Kucherov pulled even with Steven Stamkos atop the Tampa Bay Lightning's career scoring list on Tuesday night, collecting a goal and two assists in a 6-2 win over the Vegas Golden Knights at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. The three-point game gave Kucherov 1,137 points with the Lightning, matching the franchise record Stamkos set before leaving Tampa Bay, and it came on a night when Anthony Cirelli scored twice and Andrei Vasilevskiy made 32 saves.

The win lifted the Lightning to 7-2-0 with 14 points. According to The Associated Press, it is Tampa Bay's best start since the 2020-21 team opened 7-1-1 on its way to a second straight Stanley Cup. Vegas, which had won seven of its previous eight games, fell to 8-3-0.

Kucherov catches Stamkos

Kucherov started the night three points shy of the record and wasted little time. He picked up the second assist on Brandon Hagel's power-play goal 4:11 into the first period, then set up Cirelli's go-ahead goal early in the second. His record-tying point came on a breakaway 5:16 into the third period, when he beat Vegas goaltender Carter Hart to make it 6-2.

The goal was Kucherov's fourth of the season, and his two assists raised his total to nine, giving him 13 points in nine games. He also scored twice in Tampa Bay's 4-2 home win over Vancouver on Saturday.

Kucherov has now recorded at least one point in all 15 games he has played against the Golden Knights. The AP reported that only Mario Lemieux, with 26 straight games against Calgary, and Tomas Sandstrom, with 17 against Tampa Bay, have longer runs of scoring in every career game against one opponent.

Stamkos, the former Lightning captain and longtime teammate of Kucherov, held the franchise mark alone until Tuesday. Kucherov can take sole possession of it with his next point.

How the game unfolded

The first period was wide open. Hagel tipped in a shot on the power play for his seventh goal of the season, with Charle-Edouard D'Astous and Kucherov assisting. Ivan Barbashev answered for Vegas at 13:16 with his first goal of the season, set up by Mitch Marner, but John Carlson restored Tampa Bay's lead just 48 seconds later with an unassisted wrist shot, his third goal of the season.

Vegas tied it again late in the period while killing a penalty. Mark Stone scored shorthanded at 18:30, assisted by Braeden Bowman, for his eighth goal of the season. The AP noted it was Stone's fifth goal in three games. The teams went to the first intermission tied 2-2.

The Lightning took over in the second period with three unanswered goals. Cirelli put Tampa Bay ahead 3-2 at 6:44 off a feed from Kucherov, then scored again without an assist at 10:09 to make it 4-2. Victor Hedman added his second goal of the season at 17:56 with a shot from the left point that got past Hart. By then, the Lightning had scored five goals on only 14 shots.

The scoring, as recorded in ESPN's play-by-play, went as follows:

Vasilevskiy holds up under a heavy shot count

The final score did not reflect the shot totals. Vegas outshot Tampa Bay 34-21, but Vasilevskiy stopped 32 of the 34 shots he faced for a .941 save percentage, including six saves while the Lightning were shorthanded. The Golden Knights went 0-for-4 on the power play.

At the other end, Hart allowed six goals on 21 shots and finished with 15 saves. Tampa Bay converted one of its three power plays and won 56.9 percent of the faceoffs, while Vegas held the edge in hits, 24-13, and blocked shots, 17-13.

Cirelli's two goals were his second and third of the season. Carlson and Kucherov each finished plus-3, Hedman was plus-2, and Jake Guentzel was plus-3 without registering a point.

A rough night for the Vegas stars

The Golden Knights generated plenty of volume but little finish from their top players. Jack Eichel was held without a point and won just 4 of 15 faceoffs, according to ESPN's box score. Marner, who assisted on Barbashev's goal, led Vegas with five shots on goal, and Shea Theodore added three. Eichel, Marner and Stone each logged more than five minutes of power-play time, but Vegas could not beat Vasilevskiy with the man advantage.

The loss was only the second in seven home games for Vegas, which is now 5-2-0 at T-Mobile Arena. The Golden Knights remained ahead of the Lightning in the overall standings with 16 points to Tampa Bay's 14, though Tampa Bay has played two fewer games.

What it means for Tampa Bay

The win opened a three-game Western road trip on a strong note. Tampa Bay has now won six of its last seven games, with the only loss in that stretch a 4-1 defeat at Madison Square Garden against the New York Rangers on Oct. 13. The Lightning are 5-0-0 at home and 2-2-0 on the road.

For Lightning fans in Tampa Bay, the record night came late: the game started at 10:45 p.m. Eastern and was carried nationally on ESPN. Tampa Bay leads the two-game season series 1-0, with the Golden Knights scheduled to visit Tampa on Jan. 14, 2027.

Vegas forward Brett Howden, whom the Lightning drafted 27th overall in 2016, played in his 500th career NHL game, according to the AP. It was his 322nd game with the Golden Knights.

What's next

The Lightning continue the road trip with back-to-back games against Central Division opponents before returning home. Kucherov's next point would make him the franchise's all-time leader.

The Golden Knights visit the St. Louis Blues on Thursday.