FIRST STAR - NIKITA KUCHEROV, RW, TAMPA BAY LIGHTNING
Kucherov led the NHL in assists and points with 8-17-25 in 15 games, helping the Lightning (49-12-4, 102 points) post a 12-1-2 February record that increased the team's lead atop the NHL overall standings to 13 points. Tampa Bay recorded at least one point in each of its first 14 games of the month (12-0-2), including a franchise-record, 10-game winning streak from Feb. 9-27. Kucherov tallied multiple points in five consecutive games during the record streak (7-11-18), highlighted by back-to-back 1-3-4 outings in home victories over CGY (Feb. 12) and DAL (Feb. 14) and a five-point effort (2-3-5) in a win at CBJ (Feb. 18). He tallied a goal in a win vs. BUF (Feb. 21), hitting 100 points in his 62nd game of 2018-19 to become the fastest player to the century mark since Mario Lemieux in 1996-97 (61 GP). He tallied three assists for his NHL-best 30th multi-point game of the season in a win at NYR (Feb. 27), helping the Lightning improve its record when Kucherov records a point to 42-4-3. The 25-year-old Maykop, Russia native leads the NHL with 30-74-104, already the second-highest single-season points total in franchise history and the most ever by a Tampa Bay right wing. He is on pace for 131 points, aiming to become the first NHL player to break 130 points since Lemieux (161) and Jaromir Jagr (149) in 1995-96.
