On Thursday night, Toronto Maple Leafs superstar John Tavares did something that hasn’t been done since Alexander Mogilny in 2003.
The Toronto Maple Leafs and the Tampa Bay Lightning are playing each other in the first round of the playoffs for the second straight year. It’s already been a big discussion piece across the league, with a total of nineteen goals scored by both teams in two games, alongside some questionable refereeing, blood baths, and injuries on both sides.
Related: NHL games today – Get watch times and odds for tonight’s playoff matchups
But, in Toronto’s 7-2 victory in game two, a second, happier storyline emerged. Captain John Tavares scored the first playoff hat trick for the Maple Leafs since former star Alexander Mogilny did 20 years ago.
Toronto Maple Leafs record (’22-’23): 50-21-11, 111 points
Tavares’ three goals were spread across the entire game, with one coming in each period. The first goal saw him rip a shot from the circle past Andrei Vasilevskiy. The second goal was a rebound that Tavares collected from just outside the blue paint and tucked into the top of the net on the backhand. For the third, the captain found the back of the net when the puck squeaked through Vasilesvkiy’s legs, and floated off the post and into the net.
Mogilny’s 2003 hat trick came in a 5-3 victory over the Philadelphia Flyers in the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. The Leafs would go on to lose the series in six games (a story everyone in Toronto knows well), but Mogilny carried a bulk of the offensive load that season.
His three goals offer a glimpse into a wildly successful career from an insanely talented player, and the value he added to the Toronto Maple Leafs. The Leafs, famously have not made the second round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs since 2004. Game three of their series against the Tampa Bay Lightning takes place in Tampa Bay on April 22.