The Tampa Bay Lightning clobbered the Calgary Flames 8-3 on Thursday night at the Scotiabank Saddledome in Calgary, Alberta. Two Lightning players had notable performances. Lightning right winger Nikita Kucherov of Maykop, Russia tied a franchise record with most points in a game with six, while Lightning center Jake Guentzel of Omaha, Nebraska notched his eighth career hat trick.
Nikita Kucherov
Kucherov had one goal and five assists on Thursday. He actually tied his own record for most points in a game. Kucherov also had two goals and four assists in an 8-2 Lightning win over the Carolina Hurricanes on November 24, 2023. Two other Lightning players have had six points in a game. Defenseman Doug Crossman of Peterborough, Ontario had three goals and three assists in a 6-5 Lightning win over the New York Islanders on November 7, 1992, and Brayden Point of Calgary, Alberta had three goals and three assists in a 6-3 Lightning win over the New York Rangers on March 14, 2024.
In 25 games this season, Kucherov has 14 goals and 30 assists for 44 points. He is a +8 with two penalty minutes, 19 power-play points, three game-winning goals, 90 shots on goal, 11 blocked shots, 14 hits, eight takeaways, and 41 giveaways.
Jake Guentzel
Guentzel’s first goal put the Lightning up 2-1 at 6:25 of the second period from Kucherov and J.J. Moser of Biel, Switzerland. He then scored from Kucherov and Brayden Point of Calgary, Alberta at 11:34 of the third period to put the Lightning up 6-3. Guentzel then closed the scoring from Point and Kucherov with two minutes and 39 seconds left in the third period.
This was Guentzel’s first hat trick with the Lightning. The other seven came with the Pittsburgh Penguins. Guentzel actually had a four goal game on April 22, 2018 in an 8-5 Penguins win over the Philadelphia Flyers in game six of the first round of the 2018 Stanley Cup Playoffs.
In 27 games this season, Guentzel has 16 goals and 13 assists for 29 points. He is a +7 with eight penalty minutes, eight power-play points, one game-winning goal, 76 shots on goal, 68 faceoff wins, 26 blocked shots, 13 hits, nine takeaways, and 29 giveaways.
With the win, the Lightning improve to a record of 15 wins, 10 regulation losses and two losses in extra time for 32 points. They lead the New York Rangers and New York Islanders by one point for a playoff spot.
Add The Sports Daily to your Google News Feed!
