While fans questioned if Kucherov had purposely let the puck go, there was no doubt in the Tampa Bay locker room.
When asked if he pulled the slick move on purpose, Kucherov simply said, "Yes."
Teammates said they had seen Kucherov pull off the move at practices. Goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy told reporters that Kucherov had skated by him before attempting the move and called his shot.
"He brought the schoolyard to the big stage," Lightning coach Jon Cooper said.
Injured star Steven Stamkos even tweeted a reference to seeing Kucherov's fakeout before.