* Jason Robertson snapped a 10-game goal drought with the first playoff hat trick of his NHL career as the Stars clawed their way back from an early 2-0 deficit to defeat the Oilers at Rogers Place.
* Robertson became the second player in franchise history with a hat trick during the round before the Stanley Cup Final, while the Stars established a team record for fastest three goals in a postseason contest.
* The Rangers look to record their third straight win when they contest Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Final against the Panthers, who are aiming to even the series before it shifts back to Madison Square Garden.
ROBERTSON RECORDS HAT TRICK AS STARS RALLY PAST OILERS IN GAME 3
Jason Robertson registered two of the Stars’ three second-period goals that were scored over a span of 3:33 and recorded the winner during the final frame as Dallas defeated Edmonton to take a 2-1 series lead in the Western Conference Final.
* Robertson (24 years, 310 days) became the fifth-youngest player in franchise history with a playoff hat trick and second youngest with one in a multi-goal comeback win, behind Denis Gurianov (23 years, 74 days in Game 6 of 2020 R1). Gurianov got four goals and five points against the Flames in the neutral-site bubble at Rogers Place.
* Robertson (14-24—38 in 42 GP) moved past Mike Modano (19-18—37 in 48 GP) for sole possession of the sixth-most postseason points in franchise history before age 25. Robertson also leapfrogged Jamie Langenbrunner (13-19—32 in 59 GP) for the seventh-most playoff goals among Stars/North Stars players age 24 or younger.
* Dallas earned its second multi-goal comeback win during the round before the Stanley Cup Final in franchise history. The first was versus the Peter DeBoer-led Golden Knights in Game 5 of the 2020 Conference Finals, which was also at Rogers Place.
HINTZ, HENRIQUE RETURNING TO LINEUP FEATURED IN #NHLSTATS: LIVE UPDATES
Monday’s edition of #NHLStats: Live Updates featured more notes from Game 3, including Zach Hyman (13-3—16 in 15 GP) scoring his League-leading 13th goal in the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs, Connor McDavid (33-67—100 in 64 GP) becoming the fourth-fastest player in NHL history to reach 100 career postseason points as well as Roope Hintz (0-2—2) and Adam Henrique (1-0—1) finding the score sheet in their return to the lineup for the Stars and Oilers, respectively.
NHL PARTNERS WITH WARRIOR FOR LIFE FUND
The NHL has partnered with Warrior for Life Fund, an initiative to help promote mental health, physical wellness and camaraderie in the military community through hockey. Through a $35,000 contribution, the NHL is sponsoring annual memorial games in Virginia Beach, Virginia, San Diego and Boston that bring together NHL Alumni and Naval Special Warfare personnel. The NHL will also commit $15,000 annually to the Warrior for Life Fund’s Human Performance Center. Click here for the full story.
QUICK CLICKS
* Rangers’ Jacob Trouba fined for elbowing in Game 3 of ECF
* Vicky Sunohara’s inspiring journey from decorated player to coach
* Igor Shesterkin’s relaxed approach for Rangers in East Final impressing Lundqvist
* Charles Barkley gets signed Leon Draisaitl jersey on ‘NBA on TNT’
* 2024 Stanley Cup Eastern Conference Final Game 3 up 42%
PANTHERS LOOK TO STARS TO HELP EVEN SERIES VERSUS RANGERS
After winning Game 1 on the road, the Panthers have suffered back-to-back overtime losses to the Rangers as the two teams get set to contest Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Final tonight in Sunrise, Fla. The Panthers are looking to avoid losing three consecutive games within a single postseason since being swept by the Lightning in the Second Round of the 2022 Stanley Cup Playoffs – a stretch that spans eight series over three postseasons.
* The Panthers will rely on a trio of proven playoff producers to help them even their series with the Rangers: Matthew Tkachuk (5-13—18 in 14 GP), Carter Verhaeghe (8-8—16 in 14 GP) and captain Aleksander Barkov (6-9—15 in 14 GP). Since the start of the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs, Tkachuk (6), Verhaeghe (6) and Barkov (3) have combined to produce 15 of the 22 game-winning goals for the Panthers in the postseason over that span.
* Verhaeghe (23) tops the franchise’s all-time playoffs goals list, while Barkov holds the franchise record for playoff assists and points. Tkachuk, meanwhile, has recorded more points than any Panthers skater across the last two postseasons (16-26—42 in 34 GP), with only Edmonton’s Leon Draisaitl and Connor McDavid producing more over that span.
* The Rangers will look to head back to Madison Square Garden with a 3-1 series lead should they earn a victory in Game 4 tonight. New York has secured a 2-1 series lead thanks to consecutive overtime victories – they can become the first team to win three consecutive playoff games that all required overtime since their current opponent, the Panthers, did so in 2023 from Game 5 of the Second Round to Game 2 of the Conference Finals. In total, there has been 10 instances of a team winning three consecutive playoff games that all required overtime – no team has pushed that streak to four games.
