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Photo of Nikita Kucherov

Nikita Kucherov

#86 · Right wing · Tampa Bay Lightning

Born Jun 17, 1993 in Maykop, RUS (age 33) · 5'11", 172 lb · Shoots left · Drafted 58th overall in 2011 by TBL (round 2)

Trophy case

×2 Stanley Cup NHL Champion 2020-21, 2019-20
×2 Ted Lindsay Award Most Outstanding Player as Voted by the NHLPA 2024-25, 2018-19

Compare with a similar player

The forwards closest to him in points in 2014-15. Pick one to see the two side by side, or choose someone else.

Joe Thornton SJS · 65 P in 78 GP Pavel Datsyuk DET · 65 P in 63 GP Kyle Turris OTT · 64 P in 82 GP Jonathan Toews CHI · 66 P in 81 GP Johnny Gaudreau CGY · 64 P in 80 GP

Career

Regular season games only. Pick a season to see its game log below. Cap hit is what he counted against the salary cap that season, where it is known.

0501002013-14: 18 points1813-142014-15: 65 points6514-152015-16: 66 points6615-162016-17: 85 points8516-172017-18: 100 points10017-182018-19: 128 points12818-192019-20: 85 points8519-202021-22: 69 points6921-222022-23: 113 points11322-232023-24: 144 points14423-242024-25: 121 points12124-252025-26: 130 points13025-262026-27: 8 points826-27

Points by season. The darker bar is the season shown below.

Season Team GP G A P +/- PIM Shots Hits P/GP Cap hit
2013-14 TBL 52 9 9 18 3 14 102 15 0.35 $712K
2014-15 TBL 82 29 36 65 38 37 191 65 0.79 $712K
2015-16 TBL 77 30 36 66 9 30 209 61 0.86 $712K
2016-17 TBL 74 40 45 85 13 38 246 30 1.15 $4.767M
2017-18 TBL 80 39 61 100 15 42 279 31 1.25 $4.767M
2018-19 TBL 82 41 87 128 24 62 246 44 1.56 $4.767M
2019-20 TBL 68 33 52 85 26 38 210 37 1.25 $9.5M
2021-22 TBL 47 25 44 69 1 22 156 32 1.47 $9.5M
2022-23 TBL 82 30 83 113 -2 36 271 61 1.38 $9.5M
2023-24 TBL 81 44 100 144 8 22 306 45 1.78 $9.5M
2024-25 TBL 78 37 84 121 22 45 265 23 1.55 $9.5M
2025-26 TBL 77 44 86 130 43 50 231 36 1.69 $9.5M
2026-27 TBL 5 1 7 8 4 0 7 0 1.60 $9.5M
13 seasons Career 885 402 730 1132 204 436 2719 480 1.28

Playoffs

Playoff games only. Pick a season to see that year's bracket.

Season Team GP G A P +/- PIM Shots Hits P/GP
2013-14 TBL 2 1 0 1 0 0 3 1 0.50
2014-15 TBL 26 10 12 22 7 14 57 39 0.85
2015-16 TBL 17 11 8 19 13 8 51 22 1.12
2017-18 TBL 17 7 10 17 -6 10 61 14 1.00
2018-19 TBL 3 0 2 2 -4 19 9 3 0.67
2019-20 TBL 22 6 26 32 17 18 82 37 1.45
2020-21 TBL 23 8 24 32 6 14 62 18 1.39
2021-22 TBL 23 8 19 27 7 14 77 24 1.17
2022-23 TBL 6 1 5 6 0 11 21 11 1.00
2023-24 TBL 5 0 7 7 -1 2 9 13 1.40
2024-25 TBL 5 0 4 4 0 2 7 5 0.80
2025-26 TBL 7 1 5 6 2 10 31 5 0.86
12 seasons Playoffs 156 53 122 175 41 122 470 192 1.12

2014-15 season totals

GP G A P +/- PIM Shots Hits P/GP Shooting % Avg TOI
82 29 36 65 38 37 191 65 0.79 15.2 14:57

Contract

$712KCap hitends in 2016, then RFA
$11KCap dollars per point65 points in 82 games
$67KCap dollars per goal above replacement10.6 goals above replacement
$6.9MWorth at the going ratewhat teams paid for a season like his
+$6.2MValueworth minus cap hit; below zero is overpaid

His cap hit for the whole season, set against what he did in the regular season. Lower is better value. In a season still being played the cost per point starts high and falls as the games add up. Value is coloured by where it ranks among the 649 ranked skaters whose contract is known. How value is worked out.

The contract

Signed by the Tampa Bay Lightning on Sep 11, 2012, as an entry-level contract: 3 years and $2.775M, beginning in 2013-14. It runs through 2015-16, with 1 season left after this one, and he is then a restricted free agent.

Season Cap hit Base salary Signing bonus Performance bonuses Paid in all Clause
2013-14 $712K $600K $93K $233K $693K
2014-15 $712K $650K $93K $183K $743K
2015-16 $712K $700K $0 $133K $700K

Each season of the contract, with this one marked. The cap hit is the same every year; what he is paid is not. The pay is as written when the contract was recorded in October 2024, so a later change, such as the rise in the lowest salary for 2026-27, is not shown.

Contracts he has signed

Signed Signed by Kind Seasons Years In all Cap hit
Jul 10, 2018 Tampa Bay Lightning Extension 2019-20 to 2026-27 8 $76M $9.5M
Oct 11, 2016 Tampa Bay Lightning New contract 2016-17 to 2018-19 3 $14.3M $4.767M
Sep 11, 2012 Tampa Bay Lightning Entry-level 2013-14 to 2015-16 signed for 2012-13, slid 3 $2.775M $712K

Every contract on record for him, newest first, with the team that signed him to it and the day it was signed. The one covering 2014-15 is marked. An extension is signed while the contract before it is still running, often a year ahead. A row with no team or date is a contract known only by its cap hit, most often one signed since October 2024.

2014-15 analytics

Regular season Playoffs

Rating

+10.6Goals above replacement47th of 665 skaters, 39th of 432 forwards
+1.8Wins above replacementgoals above replacement divided by six
+7.2Goals above averagethe five parts below added up

Each number is coloured by where it ranks among the 432 ranked forwards: green is in the top fifth and red the bottom fifth, with paler shades in between and amber for the middle. Hover over a tile for its percentile.

Even-strength offence+8.6 98th percentileEven-strength defence-1.2 23rd percentilePower play-0.3 25th percentilePenalty kill-0.1 25th percentilePenalties+0.2 43rd percentile

The goals he added to his team's goal difference, compared with a spare-part player given the same ice time. Each part is measured against the league, so zero is an average skater, and the rank beside it is among forwards. A full season is about two-thirds the player and one-third chance. Before 2023-24 the NHL timed events less exactly, and differently from rink to rink, so expected goals for this season are rougher than for recent ones.

05101520252013-142015-162017-182019-202022-232024-252026-27Goals above replacementGoals above replacement, by season

On the ice

What happened at five-on-five while he was on the ice. What these numbers mean

55.9Corsi for %1058 attempts for, 833 against
+4.0CF% relative to teamagainst the team without him
59.1Expected goals for %48.6 expected for, 33.6 against
+5.8xGF% relative to teamagainst the team without him
56.0Fenwick for %unblocked attempts
66.7Goals for %70 for, 35 against
103.8PDO11.6% shooting + 92.2% saves
248Attempts takenhis own shot attempts

Each share is coloured by where it ranks among the 585 skaters who played enough to be ranked: green is in the top fifth and red the bottom fifth, with paler shades in between and amber for the middle. Hover over a tile for its percentile. PDO and attempts taken are left plain, since neither is good or bad on its own.

Who he played with

Forward lineGPTimeCF%xGF%Goals
Tyler Johnson · Ondrej Palat · Nikita Kucherov63658:2457.461.245-22
Nikita Kucherov · Vladislav Namestnikov · JT Brown748:5151.557.91-2
Alex Killorn · Tyler Johnson · Nikita Kucherov1538:2158.557.92-0
Tyler Johnson · Nikita Kucherov · Vladislav Namestnikov629:1651.957.61-2

The lines he spent the most time in at five-on-five, with the team's share of the shot attempts and expected goals, and the goals for and against, while they were out. The two shares are coloured as above, against the league's lines that played a fair amount together. Hover over one for its percentile.

Chances and finishing

Expected goals adds up how likely each of his shots was to go in, judged by where it came from, what kind of shot it was and whether it was a rebound. All situations, leaving out shots at an empty net. Before 2023-24 the NHL timed events less exactly, and differently from rink to rink, so expected goals for this season are rougher than for recent ones.

28Goalsnot counting empty-netters
18.7Expected goalsfrom 257 unblocked attempts
+9.3Goals above expectedgoals minus expected goals
Chances created 0.92 expected goals per 60 minutes86th
Shot quality 7.3% chance per attempt50th
Finishing +9.3 goals above expected98thOne season of finishing is mostly luck.

Each bar shows the share of forwards he is ahead of, among the 415 who played 300 minutes or more this season.

01020Game 20Game 40Game 60Game 80Goals 28Expected 18.7

His goals and his expected goals as the season went on. When the goals line pulls away above, he is scoring more than his chances were worth; below, less.

Where he shot from

Every attempt he took this season, in all situations, attacking the net on the right. Darker red means more attempts from that spot, and each dot is a goal. "Show every shot" switches to a dot for each attempt, bigger for a better chance. Click a goal for its details.

Game log

Date Opponent Result G A P +/- PIM Shots Hits TOI
Apr 11, 2015 vs BOS W 3-2 (SO) 1 0 1 0 0 2 2 16:37
Apr 9, 2015 vs NJD W 4-3 (OT) 0 3 3 1 0 3 0 17:57
Apr 4, 2015 @ FLA W 4-0 0 0 0 1 0 1 1 11:28
Apr 2, 2015 @ OTT L 1-2 (OT) 0 0 0 0 2 4 0 15:21
Mar 31, 2015 @ TOR L 1-3 0 1 1 0 2 5 0 15:42
Mar 30, 2015 @ MTL W 5-3 1 0 1 2 0 4 1 13:33
Mar 28, 2015 @ DET L 0-4 0 0 0 -2 0 3 2 15:55
Mar 26, 2015 vs NSH L 2-3 0 0 0 0 0 4 0 14:43
Mar 24, 2015 vs FLA W 4-3 1 0 1 0 2 1 3 15:06
Mar 22, 2015 vs BOS W 5-3 0 1 1 1 0 0 1 14:06
Mar 20, 2015 vs DET W 3-1 0 0 0 1 0 3 0 14:30
Mar 16, 2015 vs MTL W 4-2 0 0 0 -1 0 1 1 14:40
Mar 14, 2015 vs WPG L 1-2 1 0 1 1 15 1 1 13:15
Mar 12, 2015 @ BOS L 2-3 (SO) 0 0 0 0 0 2 1 14:46
Mar 10, 2015 @ MTL W 1-0 (OT) 0 0 0 1 0 1 1 18:47
Mar 7, 2015 vs DAL W 5-4 1 0 1 0 0 2 1 15:28
Mar 5, 2015 vs TOR W 4-2 1 0 1 1 2 4 0 14:00
Mar 3, 2015 vs BUF W 3-0 0 0 0 0 0 4 1 15:34
Mar 1, 2015 @ FLA L 3-4 0 1 1 0 0 1 4 14:13
Feb 27, 2015 vs CHI W 4-0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 15:00
Feb 22, 2015 @ COL L 4-5 1 1 2 1 2 3 1 16:45
Feb 21, 2015 @ ARI W 4-2 0 0 0 1 0 2 3 16:42
Feb 18, 2015 @ ANA W 4-1 1 0 1 2 0 1 1 12:00
Feb 16, 2015 @ LAK L 2-3 0 1 1 1 0 1 0 15:12
Feb 15, 2015 @ SJS W 5-2 0 0 0 1 2 1 2 15:07
Feb 12, 2015 vs STL L 3-6 0 1 1 -2 0 1 1 14:57
Feb 10, 2015 @ NSH L 2-3 (OT) 1 0 1 -1 0 4 0 17:52
Feb 8, 2015 vs ANA W 5-3 1 0 1 1 2 2 0 15:32
Feb 7, 2015 vs LAK L 2-4 1 0 1 -1 0 4 0 14:26
Feb 5, 2015 @ DAL W 5-3 1 1 2 2 0 4 0 13:52
Feb 3, 2015 @ STL L 1-2 (OT) 0 0 0 -1 0 3 0 14:09
Jan 31, 2015 vs CBJ W 3-1 0 0 0 0 2 1 0 18:53
Jan 29, 2015 vs DET W 5-1 0 0 0 1 0 2 0 15:26
Jan 27, 2015 @ CAR L 2-4 0 0 0 -1 0 3 3 15:08
Jan 20, 2015 vs VAN W 4-1 0 0 0 0 0 4 1 14:27
Jan 17, 2015 vs COL W 3-2 (SO) 0 0 0 0 0 2 1 16:59
Jan 15, 2015 vs EDM W 3-2 0 1 1 1 0 2 1 14:50
Jan 13, 2015 @ BOS L 3-4 0 1 1 2 0 3 0 18:53
Jan 12, 2015 @ PHI L 3-7 0 0 0 -1 0 3 2 18:35
Jan 9, 2015 vs BUF W 2-1 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 16:26
Jan 6, 2015 @ MTL W 4-2 0 2 2 0 0 4 0 16:29
Jan 4, 2015 @ OTT W 4-2 0 2 2 1 0 2 0 17:40
Jan 2, 2015 @ PIT L 3-6 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 16:36
Dec 31, 2014 @ BUF W 5-1 2 1 3 4 0 5 0 14:51
Dec 29, 2014 vs TOR W 3-2 0 0 0 -1 0 0 1 16:06
Dec 27, 2014 vs CAR W 2-1 1 0 1 1 0 2 0 15:43
Dec 23, 2014 vs PIT W 4-3 1 2 3 4 0 3 1 14:43
Dec 20, 2014 @ NYI L 1-3 0 0 0 -1 0 2 1 16:21
Dec 19, 2014 @ NJD L 2-3 (SO) 1 0 1 0 0 3 0 20:16
Dec 16, 2014 @ PHI W 3-1 0 1 1 1 0 1 3 15:49
Dec 15, 2014 @ PIT L 2-4 1 1 2 1 0 1 0 14:23
Dec 13, 2014 @ WSH L 2-4 0 1 1 1 0 1 0 12:43
Dec 11, 2014 vs CAR W 2-1 2 0 2 1 0 2 1 14:49
Dec 9, 2014 vs WSH L 3-5 0 0 0 0 0 4 1 13:45
Dec 6, 2014 vs CBJ L 1-3 0 1 1 -1 0 1 0 11:19
Dec 4, 2014 vs BUF W 5-0 0 0 0 1 0 2 0 15:15
Dec 2, 2014 @ BUF L 1-2 (SO) 0 1 1 1 2 2 2 14:57
Dec 1, 2014 @ NYR W 6-3 0 1 1 3 2 1 2 15:40
Nov 29, 2014 vs OTT W 4-1 1 0 1 0 0 5 1 15:22
Nov 26, 2014 vs NYR W 4-3 1 0 1 0 0 2 0 16:45
Nov 22, 2014 vs MIN W 2-1 0 0 0 0 0 2 1 17:04
Nov 20, 2014 @ TOR L 2-5 0 1 1 1 0 1 2 16:17
Nov 18, 2014 @ NYI L 2-5 0 1 1 0 0 0 1 13:56
Nov 17, 2014 @ NYR W 5-1 1 0 1 1 0 3 0 13:56
Nov 15, 2014 vs NYI W 5-2 0 1 1 0 0 3 1 13:52
Nov 13, 2014 vs SJS L 1-2 0 0 0 0 0 3 2 16:38
Nov 11, 2014 @ CHI L 2-3 (SO) 1 0 1 1 0 3 0 13:24
Nov 9, 2014 @ DET W 4-3 (SO) 0 0 0 1 0 4 0 14:21
Nov 8, 2014 @ CBJ W 7-4 0 1 1 -1 0 1 2 12:16
Nov 6, 2014 vs CGY W 5-2 0 1 1 2 0 2 2 14:20
Nov 1, 2014 vs WSH W 4-3 1 1 2 2 0 4 0 15:42
Oct 30, 2014 vs PHI W 4-3 0 0 0 0 0 2 1 13:42
Oct 28, 2014 vs ARI W 7-3 3 0 3 2 0 6 0 16:40
Oct 25, 2014 @ MIN L 2-7 1 0 1 -1 0 2 0 15:07
Oct 24, 2014 @ WPG W 4-2 0 3 3 2 0 3 0 15:43
Oct 21, 2014 @ CGY W 2-1 (OT) 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 08:39
Oct 20, 2014 @ EDM L 2-3 0 0 0 1 0 3 0 13:06
Oct 18, 2014 @ VAN W 4-2 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 08:05
Oct 14, 2014 vs NJD L 1-2 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 11:34
Oct 13, 2014 vs MTL W 7-1 0 2 2 1 0 2 0 10:21
Oct 11, 2014 vs OTT L 2-3 (SO) 0 0 0 -1 0 0 0 12:02
Oct 9, 2014 vs FLA W 3-2 (OT) 0 0 0 -1 2 4 0 12:50