Nikita Kucherov was outstanding during the 2025-26 NHL regular season for the Tampa Bay Lightning. By just about any measure, he was one of the most effective forwards in the offensive zone in the entire league. The former 58th-overall pick was named a Hart Trophy finalist, alongside some dudes named Nathan MacKinnon and Connor McDavid. Pretty good company. The kind of company just about every other player in the NHL wishes he was keeping.
All of that evaporated during the Lightning's first-round playoff loss to the Montreal Canadiens, however. After notching 130 points in 76 games during the regular season, Kucherov's game seemed to hit a wall later in the playoffs. He only scored on goal, and didn't notch a point in Games 5, 6, or 7. If he were a Toronto Maple Leaf, they would have traded him and blamed him for their shortcomings a year after he was shipped out of town.
Playoff struggles land Nikita Kucherov on all-bust team
This led to The Athletic's master of lists, Sean McIndoe, to plant Kucherov--and Brayden Point--on his NHL playoff all-bust team. His reasoning is sound. "With the series tied 2-2 and three one-goal games to come, Kucherov largely disappeared," the former DownGoesBrown opined. "Should three quiet games be enough to make this list? When you’re an MVP finalist and your aging team’s window seems to be slamming shut, I think it should be."
All's fair in love and playoff hockey, and it's tough to defend Kucherov's performance against the Habs. Tampa losing to Montreal needs to be viewed in a new light, however, as the upstart squad has continued to win games and advance through the postseason. After beating the Lightning, the Canadiens disposed of the Buffalo Sabres in seven games and handed the Carolina Hurricanes their first loss of the playoffs.
Both Brayden Point and Nikita Kucherov need to be better for the Lightning to contend for the Stanley Cup
The fallout following the postseason loss has focused largely on Tampa's best players being its best players. This isn't a team that is getting any younger, and while flags fly forever, you can bet that the likes of Kucherov, Point, and Victor Hedman would love at least one more crack at winning hockey's ultimate prize.
For that to happen, the team's top two offensive forwards need to produce more in a seven-game series against a team that managed to be middle of the pack in terms of goal prevention during the regular season. That may be harsh criticism, but hockey turns into a game of small sample sizes during the playoffs. One goal just isn't going to cut it for Kucherov, and neither will Point's vanashing act.
The Lightning are saying all the right things heading into a pivotal summer, though, and should be ready to take on the new blood that has started to take control of the Atlantic Division over the last six months. Point is going to work on a new offensive approach as he faces the reality of getting older, and Kucherov will attempt to build on his reputation as one of the most electric puck-possession forwards of the salary cap era.
If things go according to plan for the Lightning next season, the only list of McIndoe's Kucherov will be landing on is the all-playoff team after leading Tampa back to the Stanley Cup Final.
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