Much like the lacrosse-style and slip dekes, the fake deke (also known as the no move or the Kucherov) was one of the new deke animations added to the NHL franchise this year. The Kucherov was made famous in 2018 when Lightning forward and former Hart Trophy winner Nikita Kucherov scored a goal during the 2018 NHL All-Star Weekend by faking a shot and letting the puck slide past the goalie. It’s an incredibly difficult move to pull off, not just in real life, but in NHL 21 as well. So how do you pull off the Kucherov? Let’s go over the controls, plus some tips on how to do this.
To pull off this move, you’ll first want to set up by using a stride deke. To perform a stride:
- Press LB/L1 and then shift LS/Left Stick to either the left or the right. The direction that you shift LS/Left Stick will depend on whether your skater is left-handed or right-handed.For left-handed shots, shift the Left Stick to the right.For right-handed shots, move this stick to the left.
Once you’ve done this, immediately move RS/Right Stick to either the left or right. Much like with the stride deke, the direction that you shift the Right Stick will depend on your skater’s shooting side. Left-handed shooters need to move RS to the left, while right-handed shooters must move it to the right.
This move is incredibly difficult to pull off, especially against AI goalies. And more often or not, this move won’t work during games. But, if you want to have a stronger chance of pulling it off, the YouTuber NHL Guides suggests that for left-shot players, swing from the right side of the ice to the left. For right-handed shooters, it’s vice versa. Start out on the left side of the ice, and then swing to the right.
