NHL Recaps: Steven Stamkos scores 500th goal and hat trick, Sens edge Pens, plus more

NHL Recaps:  January 18, 2023

There were five games on the Wednesday schedule with one giant milestone for fans to enjoy.

Steven Stamkos, the captain of the Tampa Bay Lightning led his team to victory over the Vancouver Canucks in style. Not only did he register his 500th goal, but he then added two more for a hat trick. He is now the third active player in the NHL to hit that benchmark with Alex Ovechkin and Sidney Crosby.

“It’s such a humbling experience when you have a moment like that and you get to celebrate it with your teammates, who are genuinely just as excited as you are,” Stamkos said via NHL.com. “I’m so thankful for them. To do it in a win too where everyone is in a good mood is just icing on the cake.” 

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NHL Recaps: Steven Stamkos scores 500th goal

Steven Stamkos recorded a hat trick that included his 500th NHL goal, leading the Tampa Bay Lightning to a 5-2 road win over the host Vancouver Canucks on Wednesday.

Stamkos became the 47th player in NHL history to reach the 500-goal plateau and the first player to hit the milestone in a Lightning uniform. With the three goals, Stamkos moves into a tie for 45th on the all-time goals list, joining Hall of Famer Joe Mullen with 502 career goals.

It took Stamkos just 4:40 into the first period to find his landmark tally, as the Lightning captain converted a nice pass from Alex Killorn in front of the net. Goal No. 501 for Stamkos came less than 10 minutes later, and he completed the hat trick with an empty-netter late in the third period.

The Lightning have won their last five games, matching their longest winning streak of the season. Two of the five victories came against Vancouver, which lost for the eighth time in 10 games.

Bruins 4 vs Islanders 1

Charlie McAvoy and Derek Forbort scored the tying and go-ahead goals in a span of 3:12 in the second period as Boston pulled away to beat New York in Elmont, N.Y.

Brad Marchand and Trent Frederic added goals in the third for the Bruins, who have won three straight since a 3-0 loss to the Seattle Kraken on Jan. 12 — Boston’s only regulation loss in its past 18 games (14-1-3). Linus Ullmark made 25 saves for the Bruins, who have an NHL-high 74 points.

Zach Parise scored in the first for the Islanders, who are 2-5-2 this month. New York goalie Semyon Varlamov stopped 20 shots.

NHL Recaps: Sens edge Pens

nhl recaps brady tkachuk
Jan 18, 2023; Ottawa, Ontario, CAN; Ottawa Senators left wing Brady Tkachuk (7) celebrates his goal scored in overtime against the Pittsburgh Penguins at the Canadian Tire Centre. Mandatory Credit: Marc DesRosiers-USA TODAY Sports

Senators 5 vs Penguins 4 (OT)

After recording three assists in regulation, Brady Tkachuk scored 25 seconds into overtime, lifting Ottawa to a win over visiting Pittsburgh.

“It was exciting for the fans,” said Tkachuk via NHL.com. “A lot of goals, entertaining. On special teams, I thought we stepped up tonight. We’ve struggled as of late, so we just needed to get back to our identity.”

On a rush early in OT, Tkachuk found himself open with the puck to beat Pittsburgh goalie Casey DeSmith (35 saves) to give the Senators their second win in six games. Drake Batherson and Tim Stutzle each had a goal and an assist, Shane Pinto and Alex DeBrincat also scored and Thomas Chabot recorded three assists for Ottawa.

Evgeni Malkin had a goal with two assists and Sidney Crosby added three helpers for the Penguins. Jason Zucker, Mark Friedman and Rickard Rakell added goals for Pittsburgh, which has won just three of its past 12 games (3-6-3).

Avalanche 4 vs Flames 1

Mikko Rantanen collected two goals and one assist and Artturi Lehkonen scored twice as visiting Colorado rode a three-goal first period to a victory over Calgary.

Nathan MacKinnon, Devon Toews and J.T. Compher collected two assists apiece and Alexandar Georgiev made 34 saves for the Avalanche, who have won three straight games.

Tyler Toffoli replied for the Flames, who have dropped two consecutive games in regulation. Jacob Markstrom stopped 27 shots.

Sharks 5 vs Stars 3

Erik Karlsson scored the game-winner midway through the third period to go with three assists as San Jose rallied from a three-goal deficit to defeat visiting Dallas. James Reimer made 33 saves to pick up his 200th career victory.

“I think the guys are doing a good job and showing up every day,” Karlsson said via NHL.com. “If everybody wasn’t doing that, then no one could have any success. I’m just appreciative of everybody else.”

The four-point game gave Karlsson 62 points for the season. He became the just the fourth defenseman in NHL history to hit the 60-point mark in 46 or fewer games, joining Bobby Orr, who did it six times, Paul Coffey (five times) and Denis Potvin (two times).

Nick Bonino had a goal and an assist and Timo Meier, Steven Lorentz and Logan Couture also scored goals for the Sharks. Jason Robertson, Ty Dellandrea and Radek Faksa scored goals for Dallas, Miro Heiskanen added two assists and Jake Oettinger stopped 23 shots.

–Field Level Media

–The Daily Goal Horn contributed to this article

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