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Witnessing something special is always a welcoming occurrence for any sports fan. It makes a season even more enjoyable when you know you might be experiencing something historic. Luckily fans across the NHL, there is a particular player in the not-so-traditional hockey city of Tampa Bay who is already putting everyone connected with the league in some way on notice.

Nikita Kucherov has shown signs of eventually becoming an elite player in the National Hockey League for a few seasons now. Since his first full season in 2014-15, he has demonstrated his ability to put the puck in the back of the net and those numbers have steadily increased year after year. His 40 goals and 45 assists last season pretty much cemented Kucherov in the company of the league's top players and debate as to who is truly the best player on the Tampa Bay Lightning ensued.

Seven games into the 2017-18 season, Kucherov is not only showing the hockey world he is the best player on the Bolts, he is making a case for being crowned the top dog of the entire NHL. His eight goals in seven games have him only one goal behind Alex Ovechkin's league-leading nine and he is tied for the most points in the NHL with his linemate, Steven Stamkos.

What's even more impressive about Kucherov's early scoring tear is that it is happening on a nightly basis. It not like he has recorded a hat-trick one game which gave his goal number a boost. He has been able to supply his team with at least one goal every game this season, placing him amongst some elite company. Kucherov is only the fourth player in NHL history to score at least one goal in the first seven games of the season. The other players to accomplish this task are Mario Lemieux, Mike Bossy, and Wayne Gretzky.

Yes, it is still incredibly early on in the NHL season. However, all the signs point to Kucherov being able to maintain a dominant performance. Now I'm not talking a goal a game type stuff but don't be surprised if Nikita Kucherov's name is involved in the Art Ross and Hart Memorial Trophy discussions.

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