Screen Shots: Kucherov's Dominance, Jeannot's Hit On Boeser And Hockey Hall Of Fame

Welcome back to Screen Shots, a regular THN.com piece in which we tackle a few NHL and hockey topics and break them down into short paragraphs.

Regular readers know what to expect in these files, so let’s get right down to business.

If Tampa Bay Lightning fans were worried about the departure of captain Steven Stamkos negatively affecting star right winger Nikita Kucherov, the play of the Russian sniper laid those fears to rest.

Kucherov is scoring highlight-reel goals and is tied for the league lead in goals, with 11 in 14 games. Kucherov is also third in the NHL in points, with 23. The Lightning are in a playoff spot in no small part because of Kucherov’s play, and he’s still in his prime.

The 31-year-old is currently on pace for a 64-goal, 134-point season. That would demolish his career high of 44 goals – which he set last season – but it would be slightly behind his career-best 144 points also set last season.

Nathan MacKinnon and Cale Makar are also in the scoring mix, and we can never rule out Connor McDavid catching up in the scoring race, but Kucherov could ultimately win his third Art Ross Trophy as the league’s top point-getter. Doing it without Stamkos underscores Kucherov’s status as an all-time great.

Related: Wild Star Kirill Kaprizov Is An NHL Hart Trophy Front-Runner? You Better Believe It

Updated: Los Angeles Kings left winger Tanner Jeannot injured Vancouver’s Brock Boeser Thursday night, and he received a three-game suspension from the NHL’s Department of Player Safety.

Jeannot’s hit on Boeser was clearly unacceptable behavior. And Jeannot’s history of supplemental discipline – including a $2,000 fine in 2022 for kneeing Ottawa’s Brady Tkachuk – doesn't give him the benefit of the doubt for the Boeser hit. You can’t target an opponent's head the way Jeannot did, and NHL Player Safety must send a message to the rest of the league that this behavior will not be condoned.

The suspension had to be below six games since he didn't have an in-person hearing, but we originally suggested a harsh penalty – at least five percent of the season, which is a suspension of about four or five games. The hit was severe enough to earn Jeannot a match penalty, which "shall be imposed on any player who deliberately attempts to injure or deliberately injures an opponent in any manner," per the NHL rulebook. That has no place in this sport.

Finally, as the hockey world focuses on Toronto for Hockey Hall of Fame weekend, we’d be remiss if we didn’t once again mention the continued snubbing of Russian icon Alexander Mogilny.

The particularly perplexing part of Mogilny’s omission from the Hall of Fame is that it can’t be debated publicly with the Hall’s selection committee, which does not reveal its reasoning behind why some players don't make it. That’s a shame.

Just to be in the conversation for the Hall is an honor in and of itself, even if the decision-makers were to explain why some players don't get in. The lack of transparency in that regard allows for conspiracy theories galore. We’d suggest having at least one selection committee member outline the reasons why one player gets in and another doesn’t.

In baseball, Hall of Fame balloting is revealed for the world to see. We’d like to see the same thing happen with the Hockey Hall of Fame. If the selection committee is comfortable and confident in their decisions, they should be willing to show the public the results of their voting.

Mogilny has the right numbers to qualify for the Hall. In fact, there have been inductees with less impressive statistics than Mogilny, making it all the more baffling he’s on the outside of the Hall looking in. Mogilny was a pioneer for Russian players, and he should be recognized for that fact.

Let us see how decisions are arrived at, and we’ll all be more comfortable with the Hall of Fame induction process.

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Related: Should Shea Weber Have Been Eligible For The Hall Of Fame While Under Contract? Heck, Yeah