To some, Nicklas Backstrom is basically the Swedish Joe Thornton, as he piles up assists while rarely scoring many goals.
Let’s hope he doesn’t ponder the same sort of celebrations that “Jumbo Joe” mentioned regarding Tomas Hertl’s four-goal night, however, as Backstrom showed he’s not a total slouch in the goals department tonight.
His first career regular-season hat trick powered the Washington Capitals’ 4-2 win against the Tampa Bay Lightning on Saturday.
Here’s video of Backstrom’s trio, which included two Alex Ovechkin assists:
Speaking of unusual events, the hat haul apparently included a Santa cap:
Even a Santa hat made the ice in celebration of @backstrom19 's Hat Trick tonight! #CapsBolts #LetsGoCaps pic.twitter.com/a7vw7XUXqr
— Washington Capitals (@Capitals) December 14, 2014
Apparently Backstrom’s scored a hat trick in his NHL career, just not in the regular season, as Mike Vogl of the team’s website notes that he collected one against the Montreal Canadiens in Game 2 of that tide-turning 2010 playoff series:
Backstrom had hat trick in Game 2 on Montreal series in 2010. This is his first in regular season. #CapsBolts
— Mike Vogel (@VogsCaps) December 14, 2014