Rookie center Elias Pettersson capped a day to remember with an overtime goal that gave the Vancouver Canucks a 4-3 win against the Ottawa Senators at Canadian Tire Centre on Wednesday.
Earlier in the day, Pettersson was named the NHL Rookie of the Month for December and selected to play in his first NHL All-Star Game. He followed that by scoring once in the second period and once in the third before winning the game with a goal at 1:38 of overtime to give the Canucks their third victory in four games.
Pettersson is the seventh rookie since 1983-84 to complete a hat trick with an overtime goal. The most recent was Patrik Laine of the Winnipeg Jets on Oct. 19, 2016.
It was Pettersson’s seventh game-winning goal this season, passing Hockey Hall of Famer Pavel Bure (six in 1991-92) for the Canucks record by a rookie. He is tied with Colorado Avalanche forward Gabriel Landeskog for the NHL lead this season. The NHL record for game-winning goals by a rookie is nine, set by Steve Larmer of the Chicago Blackhawks in 1982-83 and equaled by Marek Svatos of the Avalanche in 2005-06.
With 42 points (22 goals, 20 assists), Pettersson is the 53rd player in the NHL’s modern era (since 1943-44) and the fifth active player to reach 40 points in the first 40 games of his career. He’s also the seventh active player to score 20 goals within his first 40 games.
Heiskanen also shines after All-Star selection
Rookie defenseman Miro Heiskanen scored two goals, including the game-winner, to help the Dallas Stars outlast the New Jersey Devils 5-4 at American Airlines Center.
Like Pettersson, Heiskanen had his big night after being selected to play in the NHL All-Star Game. He became the first rookie defenseman with multiple games of at least two goals in a season since teammate John Klingberg did it twice in 2014-15. The only other rookie defenseman in Stars/Minnesota North Stars history to have multiple two-goal games in a season was Brad Maxwell in 1977-78.
The 19-year-old, selected in the first round (No. 3) by the Stars in the 2017 NHL Draft, has 19 points (nine goals, 10 assists) in 41 games played. That’s the most points in a season by a teenage defenseman in Stars/North Stars history, besting the previous mark set by Doug Hicks in 1974-75 (18 points; six goals, 12 assists in 80 games).
Heiskanen leads all rookie defensemen in goals and is one behind Rasmus Dahlin of the Buffalo Sabres, the No. 1 pick in the 2018 NHL Draft, for most points by a rookie defenseman this season.
Video: NJD@DAL: Heiskanen cuts to middle and roofs backhand
Gaudreau powers Flames into first in West
Forward Johnny Gaudreau scored one goal and had three assists for his second straight four-point game, helping the Calgary Flames (25-12-4, 54 points) defeat the Detroit Red Wings 5-3 at Little Caesars Arena to move into first place in the Western Conference.
It was the fourth four-point game this season for Gaudreau, who has 10 multipoint performances in his past 15 games. Gaudreau and teammate Matthew Tkachuk are the only players in the NHL this season who’ve had four four-point games.
Video: CGY@DET: Gaudreau pots PPG off Tkachuk’s pass
Crosby helps Penguins extend winning streak to seven
Sidney Crosby had a goal and an assist for his fifth straight multipoint game and the Pittsburgh Penguins extended their winning streak to seven games with a 7-2 victory against the New York Rangers at Madison Square Garden.
It’s the fourth time in his NHL career that Crosby has had multiple points in five consecutive games. He also did it from Jan. 5-17, 2018, Nov. 24 to Dec. 2, 2017 and Nov. 5-13, 2010.
Pittsburgh (22-12-6, 50 points) moved within one point of the Washington Capitals (24-11-3, 51 points) for first place in the Metropolitan Division.
Goalie Matt Murray made 28 saves and is 8-0-0 (including Stanley Cup Playoffs) against the Rangers. He is the ninth different goalie in NHL history to begin his career (regular season and playoffs) with at least eight consecutive wins against any opponent. That list is led by Pete Peeters, who started his NHL career 13-0-0 against Detroit.
Video: PIT@NYR: Crosby finds loose puck and buries it
MacKinnon, McDavid join 60-point club
Center Nathan MacKinnon joined linemate Mikko Rantanen as the second Avalanche player to reach 60 points this season with an assist in a 5-4 loss to the San Jose Sharks at Pepsi Center.
MacKinnon (60 points; 24 goals, 36 assists) and Rantanen (65 points; 19 goals, 46 assists) are the only teammates with at least 60 points this season, and they became the third set of teammates since teams began playing an 82-game schedule in 1995-96 to each reach 60 points through 41 team games.
Edmonton Oilers center Connor McDavid, the two-time defending NHL scoring champion, also reached 60 points when he scored two goals and assisted on one in a 3-1 win against the Arizona Coyotes at Gila River Arena. McDavid (61 points; 23 goals, 38 assists in 39 games) has at least three points in seven games this season. He’s the sixth different player in Oilers history to have 60 points through 39 or fewer appearances and the first since Mark Messier had 60 points (22 goals, 38 assists) in 39 games in the 1989-90 season.
from A Viral Update http://bit.ly/2QkKGfE
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