Nikita Kucherov's Natural Hat Trick Powers the Lightning Past the Sabres, 8-3, on Veterans Appreciation Night

The Buffalo Sabres had done the hard part. Down 4-0 midway through the second period at KeyBank Center on Wednesday night, they scored three straight goals and pulled within one just 33 seconds into the third. Then Nikita Kucherov took the game back.

Kucherov scored at 1:25, 4:11 and 14:13 of the third period, the last one on the power play, as the Tampa Bay Lightning pulled away for an 8-3 win over the Sabres. The Ticket called it a natural hat trick, and the three goals came one right after another, turning a nervy 4-3 game into a 7-3 rout. He finished with three goals and an assist.

The game opened the NHL's Veterans Appreciation Night doubleheader on TNT, according to NHL.com, with the Utah Mammoth visiting the Vegas Golden Knights in the late game.

Tampa Bay grabbed control late in the first period. Scott Sabourin scored at 18:49, set up by Conor Geekie and Jake Guentzel, and John Carlson added a power-play goal 49 seconds later to make it 2-0 at the first intermission. Brandon Hagel made it 3-0 at 4:33 of the second for his 10th goal of the season, finishing a pass from Anthony Cirelli in the slot, and Yanni Gourde made it 4-0 at 13:02.

Buffalo answered with a push of its own. Josh Doan scored on the power play at 15:54 of the second, Jason Zucker scored with 28 seconds left in the period, and Tage Thompson made it 4-3 just 33 seconds into the third.

That was as close as it got. Kucherov's three goals followed, and Hagel added his second of the night at 15:06 to finish the scoring. The Ticket reported that Kucherov and Carlson were in on all four Tampa Bay goals in the third period.

Sabres starter Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen allowed five goals on 14 shots before Colten Ellis replaced him early in the third, The Ticket reported, and Ellis stopped five of the eight shots he faced. At the other end, Andrei Vasilevskiy made 28 saves on 31 shots. Buffalo actually outshot Tampa Bay 31-22, but the Lightning went 2-for-4 on the power play while the Sabres went 1-for-3.

Carlson had the kind of night a defenseman remembers. He reached 800 career points with his first career five-point game, one goal and four assists, according to The Ticket. Guentzel also had four assists, Hagel finished with two goals and an assist, and Cirelli had three assists in his 600th NHL game. Sam O'Reilly, recalled from Syracuse before the game, picked up an assist in his NHL debut.

Kucherov came into the night with 22 points, five goals and 17 assists, and NHL.com noted in its preview that he was two goals away from becoming the second skater in franchise history with 200 road goals, behind Steven Stamkos and his 269. He got three.

This has not been a quiet season in Tampa. NHL.com noted before the game that the Lightning had been thriving despite the uncertainty surrounding Kucherov's trade request. They are also playing without center Brayden Point, who was placed on injured reserve Tuesday with a lower-body injury after putting up 16 points in 17 games, NHL.com reported.

The win bounced Tampa Bay back from a 4-3 loss at Winnipeg on Sunday and lifted the Lightning to 12-4-2, fifth in the Eastern Conference. Buffalo fell to 8-7-3, 10th in the East, with two straight losses. The Ticket reported the Sabres are 1-3-0 in their last four games, a stretch that includes a 4-1 loss to Vegas on Sunday.

Both teams turn right around on Thursday. The Lightning play at Columbus at 7 p.m. Eastern, and the Sabres visit the Chicago Blackhawks at 8 p.m. Eastern.

It was fitting that a night set aside to thank America's veterans turned into a lesson in finishing the job. Buffalo showed real heart climbing back from a four-goal hole to make it a one-goal game, and for a moment early in the third period, KeyBank Center believed. Then the best player on the ice decided the game was his.

Whatever happens with Kucherov's future, and there will be plenty of talk about it between now and the trade deadline, nobody can say he is coasting. He is producing in the biggest moments, and the Lightning are winning without Point because their veterans are carrying the load. Carlson reaching 800 points with a five-point night, Cirelli playing his 600th game and a rookie like O'Reilly getting his first point in the same game is the kind of mix every contender needs.

For Buffalo, the lesson is the opposite. A 4-0 hole on home ice is not a recipe for winning in this league, and a team that is 1-3-0 in its last four cannot afford many more nights like this one before the standings start to get away from it. Thursday in Chicago is a good place to start answering back.