Nikita Kucherov’s trophy shelf is starting to fill up in a hurry after another productive campaign.
The Tampa Bay Lightning superstar won the Ted Lindsay Award as the league’s “most outstanding player” for the second time in his career on Wednesday, as voted on by fellow members of the National Hockey League Players’ Association.
Kucherov had a dominant campaign for the Bolts, tallying 37 goals and 84 assists for a league-leading 121 points en route to his third career and second straight Art Ross Trophy.
His league-leading 84 assists also made him the fourth player in NHL history to record three straight 80-assist seasons.
The 31-year-old also led the Lightning to a second-place finish in the Atlantic Division with a 47-27-8 record. The Lightning had the most productive offence in the league with 292 goals — six more than the second-place Washington Capitals. They also allowed the fourth-fewest goals against at 216.
Kucherov was a finalist for the Ted Lindsay last season after finishing with a career-high 144 points, but was beat out by first-time winner Nathan MacKinnon.
But Kucherov got the leg up this time around, edging out MacKinnon and his Avalanche teammate Cale Makar for the hardware.
Kucherov previously won the Ted Lindsay in 2018-19 after finishing with a league-leading 128 points (41 goals and 87 assists). He now joins Connor McDavid, Alex Ovechkin, and Sidney Crosby as the only active players who have won more than one.
