Point’s 2 goals and Kucherov’s 4 points give Lightning 5-3 win over Golden Knights

LAS VEGAS — Brayden Point scored two third-period goals and Nikita Kucherov had a four-point night to lift the Tampa Bay Lightning to a 5-3 victory over the Vegas Golden Knights on Tuesday in a battle of teams fighting for playoff positioning.

Two of the Lightning’s goals came on special teams, one short-handed and the other with the man advantage. Tampa Bay entered the game with the NHL’s top power play.

“In the end, it was special teams play,” Lightning coach Jon Cooper said. “If you can win that battle, it gives you a chance to win the game, so special teams was big for us tonight.”

With his 37th and 38th goals, Point has eight points against the Knights over the past three meetings. Kucherov had a goal and three assists to extend his point streak to 11 games and overtake Colorado’s Nathan McKinnon with an NHL-best 118 points.

Anthony Cirelli and Anthony Duclair scored the other goals for the Lightning, and Andrei Vasilevskiy made 24 saves. Steven Stamkos had two assists, giving him a six-game point streak.

Duclair has at least a point in all four games since Tampa Bay acquired him from San Jose.

“I’m just trying to learn the system,” Duclair said. “I’m still getting used to the plays and stuff like that. I’m getting to know the guys’ tendencies out there, but you’re playing with Kuch, Pointer. The game’s easier out there, a lot easier.”

Jonathan Marchessault, Brett Howden and Ben Hutton scored for Vegas. Marchessault’s goal was his team-best 38th, also a career high, that came in his 500th career game for the Knights. Keegan Kolesar had two assists, Shea Theodore expanded his point streak to five games with an assist and Adin Hill stopped 16 shots.

In the meeting between teams that have captured three of the previous four Stanley Cup…