Patrik Laine celebrates his hat-trick goals- Source: Getty

Montreal Canadiens forward Patrik Laine was humble when reflecting on his hat trick performance in the team’s 6-1 rout of the Buffalo Sabres on Tuesday night. Laine scored three power-play goals similarly, showcasing his lethal one-timer shot.

Despite his offensive output, Laine downplayed the overall quality of his game.

“I think it was okay. I think it found some holes today, but I think overall, for at least for myself, it was kind of an average game, not in terms of the like, if you take away the goals like, I’ve had million times better games than that,” Laine said after the game.

“I’ve had zero goals, but it’s just, upon the power play it went in. But outside of that, I would call it a pretty, pretty average performance for myself today. But that was, that was enough.”

Patrik Laine’s hat trick was the 11th of his career, placing him third all-time among Finnish NHL players, behind legends Jari Kurri (23) and Teemu Selanne (22).

Juraj Slafkovsky, Josh Anderson and Joel Armia also scored for Montreal, while Dylan Cozens tallied the lone goal for Buffalo. Sabres goaltender Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen was pulled after allowing six goals on 21 shots. He was replaced by James Reimer, who stopped all six shots he faced. Canadiens goaltender Sam Montembeault made 20 saves.

Habs fans celebrate Patrik Laine’s hat-trick

Montreal Canadiens fans erupted as Patrik Laine scored his third goal of the night to complete the hat trick against Buffalo. As soon as the puck hit the back of the net, hats rained down onto the ice at the Bell Centre in celebration.

LAINE GETS THE HATTY IN AN ABSOLUTE SABRES BEAT DOWN 🎩🎩🎩 pic.twitter.com/CXiCOLSwpU

— Spittin' Chiclets (@spittinchiclets) December 18, 2024

Patrik Laine said he was moved by the crowd’s reaction.

“It was good. It’s always, always fun to score, score a hat trick. And, yeah, I thought they couldn’t, couldn’t be any louder since, since my first goal. But I was, I was definitely wrong. But there were a lot of hats. So unfortunately for the fans, some of them lost, lost hats. But very good cost.”

Juraj Slafkovsky playfully remarked that his hat trick at the Bell Centre last year caused a crowd eruption louder than Laine’s. On fans cheering for Laine, Slafkovsky said:

“It’s probably one of the best feelings ever. Today I had goosebumps all over my body when I heard that, I’m so happy (for him).”

Not sure if this'll help out at all but here's the video! pic.twitter.com/um0qr9GK1f

— Hockey Daily 365 l NHL Highlights & News (@HockeyDaily365) December 18, 2024

The team will hit the road to face the Detroit Red Wings on Friday.