Bennett’s hat trick propels Panthers
Sam Bennett scored his second hat trick this season and added an assist to lead the Florida Panthers over the Dallas Stars 7-1 at home on Friday night.
Jonathan Huberdeau had a goal and three assists to give him 51 points. Gustav Forsling scored his first of the season, Anthony Duclair had a goal and two assists, and Carter Verhaeghe also scored for the Panthers.
Brandon Montour had two assists, and Sergei Bobrovsky made 28 saves.
Bennett also had three goals Oct. 16 against the Islanders, the second game of the season.
“Sometimes it’s just your night,” Bennett said. “You’ve got to take advantage of those nights because they don’t happen too often, but tonight was one of those nights for sure.”
The Panthers are 7-0-1 since the extended Christmas break and they improved to 19-3-0 at home.
Wild 7, Ducks 3: Mats Zuccarello had two goals and an assist in Minnesota’s home win over Anaheim. It marked the Wild’s third straight victory following a five-game skid. Medical report: Toronto added three more players — forwards Ondrej Kase and Nick Ritchie and defenseman Justin Holl — to the NHL’s COVID-19 protocols, giving the team five players on the list.
A total of 20 Maple Leafs players have entered the protocols since the team’s outbreak began last month.
⏩ The list of players being added to the COVID-19 protocols includes Dallas’ Andrej Sekera, Anaheim’s Troy Terry, the New York Rangers’ Alexis Lafreniere and St. Louis’ Pavel Buchnevich.
Briefly: Former Sharks goalie Alex Stalock, who hasn’t played this season after being diagnosed with a heart condition in September after contracting COVID-19, was placed on waivers by Edmonton. The move allows Stalock, 34, to begin a comeback attempt with Bakersfield of the American Hockey League . ... Florida signed minor-league goalie Evan Fitzpatrick to an NHL deal, enabling the team to add him to its taxi squad . ... Chicago defenseman Calvin de Haan was fined $2,500 for a dangerous trip of Montreal forward Cole Caufield on Thursday.