Erik Gustafsson is not shy to the offensive side of his defense position and that was on full display in the Capitals’ Saturday night victory over the Toronto Maple Leafs.
Gustafsson had a career-best game, becoming the third defenseman in Capitals history to score a hat trick, joining Sergei Gonchar (Jan. 4, 2000) and Kevin Hatcher (Jan. 13, 1993).
The 30-year-old rearguard went from having no goals as a Capital to having the third-most amongst Capitals defensemen this season.
The hat trick
Goal 1
First goal as a Cap! pic.twitter.com/snRTb70h9Z
— Washington Capitals (@Capitals) December 18, 2022
Gustafsson kicked the game’s scoring off with his first of the night. The offensive defensemen followed a tough angle Sonny Milano shot to the net and banked the rebound off of Ilya Samsonov and over the red line.
Goal 2
sweet sassy molassey
pic.twitter.com/sIuADlT0g3
— Washington Capitals (@Capitals) December 18, 2022
The slick Swede tallied again in the second as he was the beneficiary of some wonderful passing work from Milano and Evgeny Kuznetsov. The hard-charging blueliner fired the biscuit into what was basically an empty net for just his second career multi-goal game.
Goal 3
First career
pic.twitter.com/1DDOcnZm3N
— Washington Capitals (@Capitals) December 18, 2022
To cap the hatty off, Gustafsson received another beautiful feed from Kuznetsov and sniped above Ilya Samsonov’s right shoulder. There was a bit of a celebration pause for both players and fans as he rocketed the shot off of the back bar in the net and it came out of the goal just as quickly as it went in.
Hats were thrown.
— Washington Capitals (@Capitals) December 18, 2022
Gustafsson is only the second defenseman in the league this season to record a hat trick after San Jose’s Erik Karlsson did so against the Anaheim Ducks in early November.
No way a hat trick
have a game Erik Gustafsson! 0 goals entering the night. 3 now! pic.twitter.com/BIk2sIKnTj
— Washington DC Sports News (@DCSportsNews365) December 18, 2022
Gustafsson was named the first star of the game after the final horn sounded. To end the game on a perfect note, he tossed his stick (after two tries) over the glass to a fan.
Photo: @pennybacker
“[It felt] great,” Gustafsson said postgame. “To score your first goal as a Cap and to get a hatty is pretty unbelievable. It’s a great feeling.”
When asked if he thought he had this sort of game in him, he replied in the negative.
“Not a hat trick,” Gustafsson replied. “Maybe a goal, not a hat trick. I actually don’t think I played my best game but when you’re kind of feeling it you just shoot the puck and tonight it went in.”
#ALLCAPS pic.twitter.com/3hsDTm9FkP
— Washington Capitals (@Capitals) December 18, 2022
Headline photo: Alan Dobbins/RMNB
This content was originally published here.
