Facts and Figures: Kucherov widens lead in NHL scoring race for Lightning

Nikita Kucherov stretched his lead in the NHL scoring race to nine points by scoring two goals and assisting on three others in the Tampa Bay Lightning's 5-1 win against the Columbus Blue Jackets at Nationwide Arena on Monday.

Hours after being named the NHL's First Star for the week of Feb. 11, the Lightning forward had his second five-point game of the season (one goal, four assists at the Edmonton Oilers on Dec. 22). He scored twice in the first period and had the primary assist on Tampa Bay's other three goals. Kucherov, who had 100 points last season, leads the NHL with 99 points (29 goals, 70 assists) in 60 games. He is one point away from becoming the first player in Lightning history with multiple 100-point seasons.
Kucherov is the eighth player since 1990-91 with at least 99 points through his team's 60th game of the season, but the first since Pittsburgh Penguins teammates Mario Lemieux (122) and Jaromir Jagr (112) in 1995-96. He also has at least four points in

, something that had happened three times in the previous 20 years: Nisse Ekman of the San Jose Sharks (Dec. 30, 2005-Jan. 10, 2006), Lemieux (Jan. 17-23, 2002) and Jagr (Jan. 28-Feb. 2, 1999).
Kucherov, who

, became the first player in Lightning history to have 70 assists in a season. The previous record of 68 was set by Brad Richards in 2005-06 and matched by Martin St. Louis in 2010-11. There have been 21 instances of a player having at least 70 assists through his team's 60th game in a season. Kucherov joined Penguins center Sidney Crosby (2006-07) as the only active NHL players who have accomplished the feat.

DeBrincat, Kane help Blackhawks outlast Senators

Alex DeBrincat had a hat trick as part of his first five-point game in the NHL, and Patrick Kane extended his point and assist streaks to 18 and 17 games, respectively, when the Chicago Blackhawks defeated the Ottawa Senators 8-7 at United Center.
Nine of the 15 goals were scored in the first period. The combined total of 15 goals matched the highest-scoring game this season, a 9-6 win by the Calgary Flames at Columbus
on Dec. 4
. It's the first time since 1995-96 that there have been two 15-goal games in the same season.
The hat trick is the fourth of DeBrincat's NHL career. The second-year forward trails only Alex Ovechkin of the Washington Capitals (six) for the most hat tricks since making his NHL debut in 2017-18. DeBrincat is also the fifth player since 1988-89 to have at least four hat tricks in his first two NHL seasons.
Kane had a goal and two assists to extend his point streak to 18 games, the longest in the NHL this season. He also had a 26-game point streak in 2015-16 and is one of two active players to have two streaks of at least 18 games; Crosby had a 25-game streak in 2010-11 and a 19-game streak in 2007-08.
Kane had an assist on the first of DeBrincat's three goals to extend his assist streak to 17 games. The
only players in NHL history
with longer assist streaks are Wayne Gretzky (23 games with the Los Angeles Kings in 1990-91) and Adam Oates (18 games with the Boston Bruins in 1992-93). The 12th-year right wing is second in the NHL scoring race with 90 points (36 goals, 54 assists). He is 16 points shy of his NHL career best 106 points, set in 2015-16 when he led the League in scoring.
DeBrincat (32 goals) joined Kane as the second Chicago players to reach the 30-goal mark this season, the fourth in the past 30 years the Blackhawks have at least two 30-goal scorers through 60 games.

Thornton gets fifth NHL hat trick at age 39

Joe Thornton had his fifth NHL hat trick, scoring three times in the third period for the San Jose Sharks in 6-5 overtime loss to the Boston Bruins at SAP Center.
The 39-year-old forward's last hat trick was Oct. 27, 2010 -- eight years and 113 days earlier. The last player to go as long without scoring three goals in a game was Winnipeg Jets forward Blake Wheeler (eight years, 357 days), who had a hat trick on Oct. 29, 2017, after last doing so on Nov. 6, 2008. It was the 15th time in NHL history that a player at least 39 years old had a hat trick, and the eighth in the past 40 years.

Giordano sets NHL career high in points with Flames

Mark Giordano had a goal and an assist to help the Western Conference-leading Calgary Flames defeat the Arizona Coyotes 5-2 at Scotiabank Saddledome. The Flames (36-16-7) are 7-1-1 in their past nine home games.
The 35-year-old set an NHL career high with 57 points (13 goals, 44 assists); his previous best was 56 points (21 goals, 35 assists) in 2015-16. Giordano, who trails San Jose's Brent Burns (65 points; 11 goals, 54 assists) for the scoring lead among defensemen this season, became the eighth player since 1978-79 to establish a single-season NHL career high for points at age 35 or older.
Giordano is three points away from becoming the fourth defenseman in NHL history to reach the 60-point mark after turning 35. Nicklas Lidstrom of the Detroit Red Wings did it four times (2005-06, 2006-07, 2007-08 and 2010-11), Al MacInnis did it twice with the St. Louis Blues (1998-99 and 2002-03), and Sergei Zubov of the Dallas Stars did it in 2005-06.