Morgan Geekie becomes the latest Bruins player to make it rain hats at TD Garden with first career hat trick
BOSTON -- Bruins third-line center Morgan Geekie has enjoyed a breakout season for Boston, but had been marred in a bit of a scoring slump as of late. He broke out of it in a big way Thursday night, resulting in fans sending their headwear to the TD Garden ice late in the second period.
Geekie logged his first career hat trick in Boston's 5-4 win over the Vegas Golden Knights, scoring twice in the first period and again in the second for his first multi-goal game in Black and Gold. It was Geekie's first multi-goal game in just over a year, as he last scored two goals for the Seattle Kraken on Feb. 28, 2023.
Geekie scored his first goal Thursday night by turning some defense into offense. He blocked a Vegas shot in the Boston end off a faceoff, took a feed from Trent Frederic, and raced down ice for a breakaway bid. He put his snapshot by Adin Hill at the 14:34 mark to give Boston a 1-0 edge.
GEEKIN OUT (part one) pic.twitter.com/y6Q504xXKH
— Boston Bruins (@NHLBruins) March 1, 2024
The 25-year-old didn't wait long to add to his tally and Boston's lead. Just 2:20 later, with the B's leading 2-0 on a Jesper Boqvist goal, Boston went on another rush. Geekie received a one-timer from David Pastrnak and fired it by Hill to make it a 3-0 game at the 16:54 mark
Things got a little tight in the second period, as Vegas ripped off two straight goals. But Geekie completed his hat trick late in the period, following up a win at the faceoff dot with a diving effort to tip home a shot by Pastrnak.
GEEKS FIRST CAREER HATTY 🤓🎩 pic.twitter.com/UrXOvgNbi2
— Boston Bruins (@NHLBruins) March 1, 2024
After a brief delay while officials checked things over, a barrage of hats flew down from the TD Garden stands to celebrate Geekie's first career hat trick in the 235th game of his five-year NHL career. Given the momentous occasion, B's alternate captain Charlie McAvoy made his way to the officials to collect the puck and get his teammate a special memento.
Geekie also has a new hat from Thursday night: A Black and Gold fedora that Kevin Shattenkirk snagged for him from the ice. Between the new puck for his collection, a nice lid for his dome, and a win to snap Boston's three-game skid, it was a great night for Morgan Geekie.
"It's something I'll never forget, for sure," Geekie said after Boston hung on for a 5-4 victory. "It's one of those things that you always hope will happen and not something you ever put weight on. There are a lot of good players in this league, and it's not something that happens every day. So, I'm definitely gonna cherish it for sure."
Geekie, who signed with the Bruins over the summer after playing the previous two seasons with Seattle, said that his last hat trick came during his time with Charlotte in the AHL. He's now up to 13 goals and 30 points this season for Boston, surpassing his career-best of 9 goals and 28 points, which he had for the Kraken last season.
Geekie became the fifth Bruins player to tally a hat trick this season, joining Pastrnak, Brad Marchand, Charlie Coyle, and Danton Heinen. Like Geekie, Coyle and Heinen recorded their first career hat tricks for Boston this season.