NEW YORK: Russian right-winger from the Tampa Bay Lightning Nikita Kucherov has been awarded the Art Ross Trophy for the second consecuti...
NEW YORK: Russian right-winger from the Tampa Bay Lightning Nikita Kucherov has been awarded the Art Ross Trophy for the second consecutive year, bringing his career total to three, the NHL’s press office said in a statement.
"The 2024-25 National Hockey League regular season concluded with Tampa Bay Lightning right wing Nikita Kucherov capturing his third career (and second straight) Art Ross Trophy as the League’s scoring champion," the statement reads.
Kucherov, who played in 78 of his team’s 82 games in the 2024/2025 NHL regular season, racked up 121 points (37 goals, 84 assists), topping all his peers to win the coveted Art Ross Trophy, which is awarded to the NHL player who leads the league in points.
According to the NHL’s statement: "He became the 10th player to win the Art Ross Trophy - first presented in 1947-48 - at least three times, joining Wayne Gretzky (10), Gordie Howe (6), Mario Lemieux (6), Phil Esposito (5), Jaromir Jagr (5), Connor McDavid (5), Stan Mikita (4), Bobby Hull (3) and Guy Lafleur (3)."
"Kucherov, who did not own even a share of the League lead in scoring until March 29 and overcame a deficit as large as 11 points, became the 14th player in NHL history to record at least three career 120-point seasons," the statement added.
This is Kucherov’s third Art Ross Trophy overall, and second straight. Last year, he posted a career-high 144 points (44 goals, 100 assists). He also previously won the trophy in the 2019/2020 NHL year, tallying 128 points (41 goals and 87 assists).
Kucherov is one of three Russians in history to win the Art Ross Trophy, along with Pittsburgh Penguin Yevgeny Malkin (in 2009, 2012) and recently crowned goals king Alexander Ovechkin (2008).
The Art Ross Trophy has been awarded 70 times to 29 players since its introduction in the 1947/1948 NHL season. The trophy’s namesake Art Ross was an NHL head coach and general manager, but is best known for being the inventor of the modern hockey puck, giving it slightly beveled edges for better control.
Kucherov, 31, joined the NHL’s Tampa Bay Lighting in 2011, and has played for them ever since. In his career, he has 994 points (357 goals and 637 assists) in 803 regular season games.
In 2020, Kucherov led the Lightning to their first Stanley Cup title since 2004, amassing an impressive 34 points (seven goals, 27 assists) during their playoff campaign.
Playing for the Russian national ice hockey team, Kucherov won bronze medals at the 2017 and 2019 IIHF (the International Ice Hockey Federation) World Championships.
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