Lightning head coach Jon Cooper said star proper winger Nikita Kucherov needs to keep in Tampa Bay — at least for this season — despite the bombshell commerce request on Friday.
Cooper said Saturday that Kucherov is “committed ” to the present group, but the coach did not say anything about future seasons.
“Kuch is 100 percent a part of this team. He wants to be a part of this team for this season, and he is committed to be with the group that loves him and the group he loves,” said Cooper instructed reporters Saturday’s matchup against the Predators.
Kucherov, an unrestricted free agent next summer time, was in the lineup for the Lightning on Saturday. The 2025-26 Hart Trophy winner entered the sport in Nashville with 15 factors (good for second on the Lightning), 4 objectives and 11 assists in 12 video games.
Tampa Bay Lightning proper wing Nikita Kucherov (86) and Nashville Predators proper wing Matthew Wood (71) battle for the puck Saturday, Oct. 31, 2026. IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
The two-time Hart winner has spent all 13 of his NHL seasons with Tampa Bay, successful the Stanley Cup twice and contributing to a decade of dominance under Cooper.
Kucherov, 33, initially instructed the Lightning — which surfaced Friday evening — that he would not signal another contract with them. The three-time scoring champion will flip 34 at the begin of next season. He also has a restricted no-trade clause, and he gave Tampa Bay a checklist of groups he’d approve being moved to.
Tampa Bay Lightning head coach Jon Cooper speaks to the referee during the third interval of an NHL hockey sport against the Vegas Golden Knights, Tuesday, Oct. 20, 2026, in Las Vegas. IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
“We are aware of the media reports regarding the future of Nikita Kucherov with the Lightning,” common supervisor Julien BriseBois said in a assertion launched Friday evening.
“We unequivocally have no intention of trading Nikita.”
Even with the back-and-forth off the ice, Cooper sees no adjustments in sport for Tampa Bay.
“I will sit here and tell you nothing has changed in what our goals are this year. Just, maybe, the context of how it is going to go about,” Cooper said. “What happens after our season is over, that’s Kuch’s right and he has earned that right for whatever happens. For us, it probably made the team stronger.”
Kucherov, in the last yr of his $76 million contract, leads the means among impending free brokers for Tampa Bay. Second-line winger Pontus Holmberg will also be an unrestricted free agent once the season concludes.