Brendan Gallagher needed just 23 minutes to notch his first career hat trick as part of the Canadiens' 5–1 win over the Flyers Thursday night.
The Montreal winger found the net just 58 seconds into the contest off of a pass from Phillip Danault. Less than ten minutes later, the Edmonton native bumped the Canadiens' lead to 3–0 with a shot along the Flyers' red line that snuck past Carter Hart, sending him to the bench in favor Brian Elliott.
Gallagher capped off the hat trick early in the second period by netting a backhand shot in front of the net off of an Andrew Shaw pass.
The sixth-year forward now has 26 goals on the season to go with 14 assists, five goals away from his career high of 31 which he set in the 2017-18 season. The win improves the Canadiens' record to 33–21–7, good enough for fourth in the Atlantic division.
Brendan Gallagher + 🚨+ 🚨+ 🚨 = 🎩#GoHabsGo pic.twitter.com/ySvTNMRAfj
— Canadiens Montréal (@CanadiensMTL) February 22, 2019
Montreal will look to extend its winning streak to three games and gain some ground in the Atlantic Feb. 23 against the Maple Leafs in Toronto.