Hat tricks are fun. Five-goal games are better.
Thursday night, Mika Zibanejad potted a whole handful of goals in the New York Rangers' 6-5 overtime win over the Washington Capitals. The performance was quite an impressive show on one of the biggest stages possible — on Broadway in front of a rabid fan base, with a playoff spot inches away and against a big-time rival.
While it hasn't been too long since the last five-goal game, it's always a big-time moment that is heralded around the league; after all, only 45 players have accomplished the feat a total of 61 times.
Here are some interesting nuggets regarding the mythical games of five or more goals.
Who had the last five-goal game?
Winnipeg Jets forward Patrik Laine scored five last season against the St. Louis Blues goalie tandem of Chad Johnson and Jake Allen.
While that's a short time frame between big-goal games, it had been 24 years since a five-goal game included the game-winner (Zibanejad's fifth came 33 seconds in OT). Detroit Red Wings star Sergei Fedorov accomplished the feat in 1996 — also against the Capitals. Zibanejad scored his five goals against one netminder, Ilya Samsonov. The last time a player victimized a single goalie — 2007, when the Minnesota Wild's Marian Gaborik scored five against the Rangers' Henrik Lundqvist.
There has been one other five-goal game on March 5; in 1992, fellow Swede, Hall of Famer and then-Quebec Nordique Mats Sundin netted five against the Hartford Whalers in his team's 10-4 win.
Most recent five-goal games
| DATE | TEAM | PLAYER | GOALS |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nov. 24, 2018 | Winnipeg Jets | Patrik Laine | 5 |
| Feb. 2, 2011 | Detroit Red Wings | Johan Franzen | 5 |
| Dec. 20, 2007 | Minnesota Wild | Marian Gaborik | 5 |
| Dec. 26, 1996 | Detroit Red Wings | Sergei Fedorov | 5 |
| March 26, 1996 | Pittsburgh Penguins | Mario Lemieux | 5 |
Who has scored the most goals in a game?
While it hasn't been that long since the last five-goal game, it has been more than 44 years since Darryl Sittler famously scored six goals (and 10 points) for the Toronto Maple Leafs against the Boston Bruins.
While six is a lot, it's not the biggest number. Hall of Famer Joe Malone holds the record with seven for the Quebec Bulldogs against the Toronto St. Pats (now Maple Leafs) in 1920.
| DATE | TEAM | PLAYER | GOALS |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan. 31, 1920 | Quebec Bulldogs | Joe Malone | 7 |
| Feb. 7, 1976 | Toronto Maple Leafs | Darryl Sittler | 6 |
| Nov. 7, 1968 | St. Louis Blues | Red Berenson | 6 |
| Feb. 3, 1944 | Detroit Red Wings | Syd Howe | 6 |
| March 7, 1921 | Ottawa Senators | Cy Denneny | 6 |
| Jan. 26, 1921 | Toronto St. Patricks | Corb Denneny | 6 |
| March 10, 1920 | Quebec Bulldogs | Joe Malone | 6 |
| Jan. 10, 1920 | Montreal Canadiens | Newsy Lalonde | 6 |
Who has the most games of five or more goals?
Malone also holds the record for most games of five-plus goals, with five. He finished his career with 143 goals in 126 games from 1917-24, a time when NHL teams played a maximum of 24 games in a season.
| PLAYER | GAMES |
|---|---|
| Joe Malone | 5 |
| Wayne Gretzky | 4 |
| Mario Lemieux | 4 |
| Newsy Lalonde | 3 |
| Babe Dye | 2 |
| Maurice Richard | 2 |
| Darryl Sittler* | 2 |
| Bryan Trottier | 2 |
* Includes one playoff game.