Mikko Rantanen records seventh NHL hat trick

Colorado Avalanche right winger Mikko Rantanen of Nousiainen, Finland recorded his seventh career National Hockey League hat trick on Tuesday. He accomplished the feat in a 4-3 Avalanche win over the St. Louis Blues at the Enterprise Center in St. Louis, Missouri.

How and when did Rantanen score thrice?

Rantanen opened the scoring at 6:36 of the first period from Nathan MacKinnon of Halifax, Nova Scotia and Cale Makar of Calgary, Alberta. He then tied the game at three with one minute and 14 seconds left in the second period from Jonathan Drouin of Ste-Agathe, Quebec and Valeri Nichushkin of Chelyabinsk, Russia, and then scored the game-winning goal from Nichushkin at 4:15 of the third period to break a 3-3 tie. Rantanen’s first and third goals were even strength and his second goal was on the power-play.

Rantanen in 2023-24

In 69 games, Rantanen has 37 goals and 56 assists for 93 points. He is a +13 with 48 penalty minutes, 38 power-play points, eight game-winning goals, 233 shots on goal, 232 faceoff wins, 43 blocked shots, 47 hits, 37 takeaways, and 36 giveaways.

Six prior hat tricks

All seven of Rantanen’s hat tricks have come with the Avalanche. His six prior hat tricks came in a 4-0 Colorado win over the Montreal Canadiens on February 7, 2017, in a 5-2 Avalanche win over the New Jersey Devils on January 4, 2020, in a 6-2 Avalanche win over the Nashville Predators on November 27, 2021, in a 6-3 Avalanche win over the Columbus Blue Jackets on November 4, 2022, in a 3-2 Avalanche win over the St. Louis Blues on December 11, 2022, and in a 6-2 Avalanche win over the San Jose Sharks on April 6, 2023.

Avalanche in 2023-24

Colorado currently has a record of 44 wins, 20 regulation losses, and five losses in extra time for 93 points. They are in a first place tie in the Central Division with the Winnipeg Jets. Colorado’s 93 points are also the fifth most points in the NHL. Boston leads with 97 points. The New York Rangers, Florida and Vancouver are tied for second place with 94 points.