Rick Tocchet spent most of 11 seasons with the Philadelphia Flyers, and nearly two decades in the NHL. During that time, Tocchet played in 1,144 games, potted 440 goals, and ended up with 952 points.
Tocchet was a good player who even hoisted a Stanley Cup when he was a member of the rival Pittsburgh Penguins. But, all will be more than forgiven if he helps the Flyers break their own championship drought.
Still, Tocchet was an entertaining player who could score, set teammates up for scoring opportunities, and even drop gloves when he had to. And that's why he's currently the all-time leader with 18 Gordie Howe hat tricks, which is 16 more than the namesake.
In case you're new to the scene or if you've never heard of a Gordie Howe hat trick, it's when a player scores a goal, makes an assist, and gets into a fight in a single game. Yeah, a little different from the traditional hat trick, I know.
Rick Tocchet was a complete player, something his legendary numbers show
Yes, I'm calling his numbers 'legendary,' even if Tocchet never even eclipsed the 1,000-point threshold. Still, he averaged 68.2 points per season when broken down into 82-game averages, to go with 31.5 goals per year, which are nothing to scoff at.
He also ended his career with 2,970 penalty minutes, broken down into 212.9 penalty minutes per 82-game season, or just under three minutes per game. So, it more than shows us just how complete Tocchet's game was,, especially early in his career, when he neared the 300-penalty-minute mark between 1985-86 and 1987-88.
Knowing how well Tocchet played when the puck was on his stick, and how physical his play was when he didn't have the puck, it doesn't surprise me an iota that the Flyers coach and one of their more recognizable players holds the record for the most Gordie Howe hat tricks, nine of which occurred in a Flyers sweater.
Anyway, Tocchet just barely holds the record, as Brendan Shanahan clocks in just behind him with 17 of them. Like Tocchet, Shanahan also boasted a complete game, so it's no surprise to see him ranked so highly on the list.
Now, the question is, will anyone overtake Tocchet any time soon? The answer is, probably not. Fighting isn't as common in today's game, so it would take a shift to a throwback mindset for anyone to threaten Tocchet's record.
So, Flyers fans, one of your former players and current coach leads the league in a rather obscure, yet intriguing stat. Intriguing because when someone logs a Gordie Howe hat trick, we're often quick to know.
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