At the All-Star break, Lightning forward Nikita Kucherov leads the NHL in scoring with 63 points.

His 27 goals tie for second, behind only Washington's Alex Ovechkin (30).

But as others enjoy the atmosphere surrounding the league's midseason celebration, Kucherov finds himself lamenting his play of late.

"The way I've been playing the last month, it's been terrible," Kucherov said Saturday at media day. "I'm not happy with my play and my game. People are talking about (Kucherov being) the No. 1 leading scorer, but I don't feel like I'm No. 1, so I have to do something a little bit better."

After scoring 13 goals in October, Kucherov has just two this month and has gone seven games without a goal. His seven points in January are by far his fewest of any month this season.

"When the puck doesn't go in, it makes it so difficult, because everything was going in and now just nothing ," Kucherov said. "I could have had maybe 20 points in the last five games, but I didn't. So, it's just something I have to get better at. Stay positive, don't get frustrated right away if something doesn't go well."

Colorado's Nathan MacKinnon (60) has closed to within three points of Kucherov in the race for the Art Ross Trophy. Lightning teammate Steven Stamkos and Pittsburgh's Phil Kessel have 58.

"Seeing all those guys putting up some points, it's nice," Kucherov said. "But you just think how easy that is for them and how tough it is for me right now in my spot, so I have to learn how to handle it."

Kucherov credited his fast start earlier this season to chemistry with former linemates Stamkos and Vladimir Namestnikov.

"That was fun," Kucherov said. "Every time we stepped on the ice, we had a smile on our faces and we were just feeling it. We had so much confidence. That was just easy. I knew what Stammer was going to do. I knew what Vladdy was going to do and we didn't really have to talk."

What would be even more fun for Kucherov would be helping the Lightning get back to the playoffs after falling short last season.

"That's something that didn't really feel good," Kucherov said. "I couldn't watch the playoffs, because we weren't there. That was tough. The thing is, I want to make the playoff every time now. I don't want to be missing any more. So, for us, it's just making the playoff and then go from there. I don't really care about even if I lose the leading scorer. If we make the playoff, that's gonna be good."