Mark Scheifele scored a career-high 32 goals for the Winnipeg Jets in 2016-17, and after potting a hat trick on Thursday night he's well on his way to besting last season's mark.
The 24-year-old's three goals led the Jets to a 5-2 win over the visiting Dallas Stars, with the victory boosting Winnipeg's record to 7-3-2 on the season.
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It was Scheifele who got the scoring underway on Thursday, when he netted the game's first goal on a power play at 10:58 of the opening period. Scheifele received an impressive cross-ice pass from Blake Wheeler before rifling a one-timer past Stars goaltender Ben Bishop.
Scheifele had to wait until the third period before scoring his second and third goals of the night. At 1:47 of the final frame, Scheifele set up shop in front of Bishop's net and deflected a Josh Morrissey shot from the point high into the air. He then watched it float fortuitously over Bishop's right shoulder to give the Jets a 4-2 lead.
There was less luck involved in Scheifele's final goal. With a minute left to play in the game, he buried an empty netter after getting a pass from Wheeler at center ice.
All three of Scheifele's goals were assisted by Wheeler, who now has 11 helpers on the season. Scheifele's hat trick pushed his goal total to seven in 12 games, which puts him on pace for 47 over the course of the entire season.