Kucherov is 5th player in NHL to reach 100 assists as Lighting beat Matthews, Maple Leafs 6-4
TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Auston Matthews came up empty in his bid to become the ninth player in NHL history to score 70 goals in a season, but Tampa Bay’s Nikita Kucherov became the fifth player to have a 100-assist season as the Lightning beat the Toronto Maple Leafs 6-4 on Wednesday night.
Matthews was denied on all seven first-period shots by 29-year-old rookie goalie Matt Tomkins, then rocketed a shot off the post midway through the second period. Tomkins finished with 35 saves, including 12 on Matthews, in his sixth NHL start.
Matthews finishes the season with 69 goals in 81 games.
Kucherov, the NHL’s scoring leader with 144 points, scored a first-period goal, then set up Brayden Point’s power-play goal with 2:55 left in the second for the history-making assist. He reached the milestone two days after Edmonton’s Connor McDavid did it.