Toronto Maple Leafs left winger Matthew Knies of Scottsdale, Arizona collected his first career National Hockey League hat trick on Saturday. He accomplished the feat in a 6-4 Maple Leafs win over the Boston Bruins at the Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, Ontario.
Inside look at the three goal game
Knies put the Maple Leafs up 2-0 at 3:37 of the second period. Auston Matthews of San Ramon, California and Mitch Marner of Markham, Ontario had the assists. Knies then put the Maple Leafs up 3-2 from John Tavares of Mississauga, Ontario and Marner at 3:43 of the third period. Then at 5:28 of the third period, Knies scored on an all-American goal to put the Maple Leafs up 4-3. Matthews and defenseman Jake McCabe of Eau Claire, Wisconsin picked up the assists.
It was a remarkable statistical line for Knies. He also had two assists for five points and was a +6. This was the highest plus/minus for a player in a single game this season, and was a career high for Knies. This was also Knies’s first ever five point game.
Fifth Arizona Born Player with a Hat Trick
Knies is the fifth Arizona born hockey player with a hat trick. The other four are winger Matthew Tkachuk of Scottsdale (six in total, three with the Calgary Flames and three with the Florida Panthers), centre Tage Thompson of Phoenix (six with the Buffalo Sabres), centre Sean Couturier of Phoenix (four with the Philadelphia Flyers), and left winger Brady Tkachuk of Scottsdale (three with the Ottawa Senators).
Knies in 2024-25
In 2024-25, Knies has 14 goals and 10 assists for 24 points in 38 games. He is a +2 with 16 penalty minutes, four power-play points, 68 shots on goal, 15 blocked shots, 78 hits, six takeaways, and 21 giveaways.
First in the Atlantic
The Maple Leafs have the best record in the Atlantic Division at 25 wins, 13 regulation losses and two losses in extra time. They have 52 points and lead the reigning Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers by two points.
