Mikko Rantanen set a pair of NHL records Wednesday night, when his natural hat trick was the difference in the Dallas Stars‘ 3-2 Game 1 win over the host Winnipeg Jets in their Western Conference semifinals series.
The Stars winger scored three goals in a 7-minute, 55-second span in the second period. It was his second straight game with a hat trick, having scored three goals in the third period of the Stars’ Game 7 win over the Colorado Avalanche last Saturday.
“Sometimes it’s ups and downs in hockey. Now, it’s going well individually and as a team,” said Rantanen, who leads the playoffs in goals (eight) and points (15).
Rantanen is the first player in Stanley Cup playoff history with multiple three-goal periods in the same postseason. He is only the fourth player in NHL history to achieve the feat at any point in his career, joining Wayne Gretzky, Maurice Richard and Tim Kerr.
Rantanen also set an NHL postseason record for having a goal or an assist on 12 straight scoring plays by his team. That streak began with an assist on Roope Hintz‘s empty-netter in the Stars’ Game 5 win over the Avalanche. Rantanen had one goal and three assists in Game 6 against Colorado, and then three goals and an assist in Game 7.
Rantanen broke a record set by Mario Lemieux of the Pittsburgh Penguins in 1992.
“Let’s see how long he can run this for. He’s rolling. He’s feeling it,” Dallas coach Peter DeBoer said. “Considering the opponent and the time of year, how he’s dominating games is pretty impressive.”
Winnipeg was up 1-0 in the second period when Evgenii Dadonov blasted a one-timer at Jets goalie Connor Hellebuyck. The puck got through Hellebuyck and sat in the Jets’ crease before Rantanen lunged with his stick while falling down to poke it for a 1-1 tie at 8:43.
Just under six minutes later, Rantanen struck again, deflecting a Thomas Harley point shot over the shoulder of Hellebuyck to give Dallas the lead.
He completed the hat trick 2:17 later on a power play, as Rantanen’s shot was deflected off Jets defenseman Dylan Samberg and into the goal to give the Stars a 3-1 lead.
Rantanen is only the fourth player in NHL history, in the playoffs or regular season, to have consecutive games with a hat trick in a single period. The last player to achieve the feat was Alex Ovechkin of the Washington Capitals in 2017. Rantanen is also the first player in nearly 40 years, and the third ever, with hat tricks in consecutive playoff games. He’s also the first player in Dallas Stars and Minnesota North Stars history to produce a natural hat trick in the playoffs.
DeBoer double-shifted Rantanen during the game, playing him on a line with Mikael Granlund and Hintz as well as Dadonov and Sam Steel. The coach said by rolling four lines in Dallas, Rantanen wasn’t getting the same amount of ice time he was earning in Colorado, so double-shifting him made sense. Rantanen played 19:08 in Game 1.
“He’s used to playing big minutes,” DeBoer said.
Rantanen was acquired by the Stars in a blockbuster deal with the Carolina Hurricanes at the NHL trade deadline, with Dallas immediately inking him to an eight-year, $96 million extension. Rantanen was set to become an unrestricted free agent this summer.
It was the second time Rantanen was traded during the 2024-25 season. The Avalanche traded Rantanen to the Hurricanes in a separate blockbuster trade on Jan. 24.
The Hurricanes decided to trade Rantanen to Dallas when it was clear he wouldn’t sign an extension with Carolina ahead of free agency.
Their losses are the Stars’ gain, as the franchise seeks its first Stanley Cup championship since 2000. Rantanen is trying to earn his second Stanley Cup ring, having won with the Avalanche in 2022. He’s now third in points (77 in 56 games) among all players over the past five postseasons, behind only Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl of the Edmonton Oilers.