Finnish players scored 11 goals in the NHL hockey round. The most effective were Columbus who mastered the hat trick Patrick Laine and two goals to a man for Colorado Mikko Rantanen and Artturi Lehkonen.
Seattle also managed to score Eeli Tolvanenof Florida Alexander Barkovof Detroit Olli Määttä and New Jersey Erik Haula.
The wave eased
Laine scored a hat trick in the Columbus Blue Jackets’ away game against the Detroit Red Wings. Columbus ended its ten-game losing streak with a 4–3 win.
The helmet trick was the tenth of Laine’s NHL career.
– I’m happy about the three goals, but I’m even happier that we won, Laine said.
Laine scored two of Columbus’ three goals in the opening set. Laine scored his team’s fourth goal in the second minute of the second period. Laine scored his first goal directly from a pass, the second one he moved in from a return puck that rebounded from the end, and the third he fired in again directly from a pass.
Laine, chosen as the best player of the match, managed to play nine matches without a goal. The last time he managed to put the nets on the cone was on December 17.
– It’s no secret that things haven’t been going well lately. I have tried to work hard and shoot as much as possible. Today, the puck bounced for me and my teammates hit great spots, Laine praised.
Laine has now played 27 matches this season with 12+10=22 power points.
Detroit made the game exciting by scoring three goals in the closing period. The team’s goal taps were opened by a Finnish defender Olli Määttä, whose shot luckily went into the goal through the skate of a Columbus player. The goal was Määtä’s fourth of the season.
Detroit’s goal Ville Husso made 21/25 saves.
Lehkonen and Rantanen scored two goals
Colorado Avalanche’s Mikko Rantanen and Artturi Lehkonen scored two goals to a man, as the team of Finnish forwards celebrated a 7-0 crushing home victory over the Ottawa Senators. Rantanen was chosen as the second star of the match and Lehkonen, who recorded 2+1 performances, was the third star.
Rantanen, who leads the Finns in points this season, already has 53 (29+24) points under his belt this season. Lehkonen’s balance is 11+18=29.
A historic away win for Kraken
Eeli Tolvanen already scored his fifth goal in a Seattle Kraken shirt in an away game against the Chicago Blackhawks. Kraken won its seventh consecutive victory with the score 8–5. Seattle has won all eight of its games since Tolvanen started in the team’s ranks at the beginning of January.
Chicago’s win was historic, as no team had ever won seven consecutive away games in NHL history.
Tolvanen, who succeeded in scoring in the second match in a row, has now scored 5+2 points in the Kraken shirt. His total for the season is 7+4=11.
Barkov scored the winning goal
Florida Panthers skipper Aleksander Barkov took on the role of the decider in the home game against the Vancouver Canucks. Barkov scored his team’s 4–2 winning goal in the second period on a power play as the Panthers celebrated a 4–3 victory. The goal was Barkov’s 11th of the season.
New Jersey Devils’ Erik Haula scored his third goal of the season in an away game against Los Angeles. Haula took his team to a 2–1 lead in the second set with an accurate shot. The Devils eventually won the match 5–2.
Almost a month had passed since Haula’s last goal.
The results of the NHL round:
Dallas–Calgary 5–6 DAL: Lindell 0+1, Heiskanen 0+2
Boston to Toronto 4–3
NY Islanders–Montreal 2–1
Florida–Vancouver 4–3 FLA: Barkov 1+0
Colorado–Ottawa 7–0 COL: Rantanen 2+0, Lehkonen 2+1
Carolina–Pittsburgh 2–1 CAR: Aho 0+1
Detroit–Columbus 3–4 DET: Määtta 1+0, Husso 21/25 save. CBJ: Wave 3+0
Washington–Philadelphia 1–3
Chicago–Seattle 5–8 SEA: Tolvanen 1+0
Minnesota–Arizona 2–1
Nashville–Buffalo 3–5 NSH: Pärssinen 0+1, Saros 28/33 saves. BUF: Luukkonen 38/41 save.
St. Louis–Tampa Bay 2–4
Vegas to Edmonton 3–4
Los Angeles to New Jersey 2–5 NJD: Haula 1+0