Report: Kucherov Wants To Play With 1 of These 3 Superstars, inc. Auston Matthews

According to a stunning new report, an NHL source says that the reason Nikita Kucherov wants to leave Tampa Bay is that he wants to play with another superstar in a big hockey market. 

This would jibe with recent word from respected ESPN hockey insider Emily Kaplan, who also reported that Kucherov wants to play with another of the league's top stars and has specific players and teams in mind.

Those three players, according to a report from Russian hockey writer Daria Tuboltseva at rg.org: Connor McDavid, Auston Matthews or David Pastrnak. 

“He wants to be the top scorer every year and play on a team with McDavid or Matthews or Pastrnak, plus in a big market, so people talk about how good he is,” the source told RG. “Playing in Florida, people forget about you from time to time.”

 Certainly, Edmonton, Toronto and Boston are hockey hotbeds, and he'd get the kind of attention he's looking for with any of those teams.

The anonymous source added that "Toronto is the more realistic option. Not a trade. He will just go there in the summer." 

Kucherov becomes an unrestricted free agent after this season, and will be free to sign with any team. He told the media today, “(Lightning GM) Julien (BriseBois) made it clear I’m free to walk on July 1st.”

The reigning Hart Tropy winner also said today that this wasn’t about money. 

Nikita Kucherov said that his trade request was a result of “poor communication and respect.” “It was never about the money for me.” Said that JBB had just two conversions with him during the last four months. #gobolts https://t.co/q9xzTCRa02

— Eduardo A. Encina (@EddieInTheYard) November 2, 2026

Kuch chalked up his trade request to “poor communication and respect.” He added that he & BriseBois have had just two conversions during the last four months.