Kubalik three-mendous in third
TAMPA, Fla. — Dominik Kubalik, shortly after scoring his 27th, 28th and 29th goals of the season Thursday for his first career hat trick, was asked a simple question: What’s clicking so well?
“I have no idea,” he responded, laughing, after the 5-2 win over the Lightning. “That’s a good question. I would like to know, too!”
“I’m just trying to . . . be around the net, because lots of goals are just laying there. So that’s where I’m trying to be, and I’ve been lucky.”
As the Hawks look forward to soon turning the calendar from February, a month in which the losses spiraled and the playoff hopes evaporated and two wellliked teammates were traded, Thursday’s game was a rare and welcome respite.
They pulled out the win, despite trailing 2-0 early in the third period.
And Kubalik, after two goals in his last four games, finally got his first hat trick — an empty-net clincher off an unselfish Brandon Saad feed.
And Slater Koekkoek, in his 36th appearance of the season, finally scored his first goal — against the team that waived him just last season.
The two heartwarming moments won’t salvage the season, but they will at least justify some smiles and happiness, a mood that hasn’t been present much lately.
“I was kind of in my head [about the hat trick], I’m not going to lie,” Kubalik said. “I was trying to do it as quick as possible and I’m really happy that it happened.”
Koekkoek wasn’t in a dishonest mood, either.
“Yeah, I’d be lying if I said it didn’t [feel good],” he said. “It was a great feeling. And at that point, it was only 3-2, so we had a big job to do and we ended up doing it.”
For Kubalik, personal successes have been as constant as team successes have been nonexistent. He’s the far-and-away NHL rookie scoring leader, and on track to pass Artemi Panarin for the fourth-best rookie season in Hawks franchise history. He’s likely to earn a huge payday this summer.
For Koekkoek, though, even consistent ice time was hard to find until recently. That made his breakthrough goal all the more uplifting for the team.
“Everyone’s happy for him,” coach Jeremy Colliton said. “He was in and out — mostly out — for a lot of the year. His game has improved and he’s a big part of the group in there, as far as mentality and just [being] willing to do the dirty work and play for his teammates.”
Lehner: Hawks tenure ‘tough’
Speaking to Vegas reporters Thursday, Robin Lehner had plenty of emotional things to say about his eventful, short-lived tenure with the Hawks.
“I didn’t play much in the beginning or middle-beginning of the season, even if I played really well and had a good camp,” Lehner said. “Eventually I took over and I won like nine out of 10 . . . and we walked up one point behind a playoff spot. Then all of a sudden, I found myself on the bench for no reason. That was tough. Plus, negotiations had totally died out.”
“I thought there was a future there and I did everything to get a future there, and I still couldn’t get a future there,” he added later. “The last couple weeks were tough mentally to find [the] motivation needed.”