Others on the close-but-no-cigar list: Alexander Mogilny, Buffalo Sabres, 1992-93; Wayne Gretzky, Edmonton Oilers, 1984; Phil Esposito, Boston Bruins, 1974; Claude Larose, Montreal Canadiens, 1974; Punch Broadbent, Senators, 1922; and Malone, Hamilton Tigers, 1921.
These offensive stars put up gaudy streak numbers, their consecutive hat tricks only part of their stories.
Selanne scored nine goals in a three-game span, with fellow rookie Keith Tkachuk, Brady’s father, scoring a goal in all three of those games. Mogilny had 13 goals over five games; Gretzky, nine in three; Esposito, eight in three; Larose, nine in three; Broadbent, 14 in six; Malone, 16 in six; Denneny, 12 in four.
Selanne came within a whisker of a third consecutive hat track in the Jets’ 5-3 victory against the Oilers in Edmonton on March 4, 1993, scoring his second of the game at 18:08 of the third period for his 56th goal of the season.
In the first period, in alone on Oilers goalie Bill Ranford, he banked a shot off one post that hit the other before the puck skittered away.
“Selanne does everything, if not more,” Keith Tkachuk said after the game. “He’s the one that’s getting us here. The press doesn’t bother me. I just go about my business, play well, and play hard.”
Mogilny came up just short of a fourth hat trick in five games when he whistled a shot over the crossbar of St. Louis Blues goalie Guy Hebert early in the contest on Jan. 3, 1993, a 6-5 overtime win for Buffalo.
“I haven’t been thinking about hat tricks,” he said, having tied former Sabres captain Mike Foligno for the most consecutive games in Buffalo history with a goal, at eight. “I didn’t know Mike had a record like that. I’m not looking at anything or anyone. I’m just trying to get as many (goals) as I can.”