Good morning, I’m Dan Gartland. I honestly can’t believe the Celtics blew another 20-point lead.
In today’s SI:AM:
👎 Trump’s doomed college sports mission
⛳ Importance of LIV’s pending tweaks
Think the Canes are regretting this?
Mikko Rantanen has shown over his last two games why not one but two teams gave up a king’s ransom to acquire him earlier this season.
On Wednesday night, Rantanen carried the Dallas Stars to victory in Game 1 of their second-round series against the Winnipeg Jets, scoring all three of the team’s goals in a 3–2 win. Even more impressive, the hat trick came in an eight-minute span in the second period.
The first goal was a one-handed effort on a loose puck as he was falling to the ice. The second was a deflection from a teammate’s shot at the blue line, and the third was an attempted pass that bounced in off a defender.
Rantanen also had a hat trick in the team’s previous game, a Game 7 win on Saturday against the Colorado Avalanche, the team he began the season with. That makes Rantanen just the third player in NHL history to score back-to-back hat tricks in the playoffs, joining Jari Kurri of the Edmonton Oilers in 1985 and Doug Bentley of the Chicago Blackhawks in ’44. Rantanen’s hat trick in Game 7 (which included an empty-net goal) featured three goals in the third period, making him the only player in NHL history to have two three-goal periods in the same postseason, according to the NHL. He’s scored or assisted on the last 12 Dallas goals, another postseason record.
“Let’s see how long he can run this for,” Stars coach Peter DeBoer said. “He’s rolling and he’s feeling it. Pretty impressive what he’s doing, considering the opponent and the time of year and how he’s dominating games.”
Rantanen’s ability to score goals in bunches is no secret. Since the 2016–17 season, his first full season in the NHL, he’s scored 294 goals, ranking eighth in the NHL over that span. So when the Avalanche put him on the trade market this winter, the Carolina Hurricanes were happy to give up three draft picks and two players to acquire him. But Rantanen only ended up playing 13 games for Carolina. He was set to become an unrestricted free agent at the end of this season, and with the Hurricanes unable to work out a contract extension, they began trying to flip Rantanen to another team. The Stars pounced on the opportunity, sending two first-round picks (one of them conditional), two third-round picks, and 21-year-old center Logan Stankoven to Carolina in exchange for Rantanen. Crucially, Dallas also agreed to terms with Rantanen on an eight-year, $96 million contract extension before consummating the trade.
After a quiet start to the postseason, Rantanen has been on fire of late. After recording no goals and just one assist in his first four playoff games, he has eight goals and six assists in his last four games. He leads the NHL in both goals and points this postseason.
It’s a dream scenario for the Stars, who are chasing their first Stanley Cup this millennium after making the conference finals in each of the past two seasons. Dallas ranked third in the NHL in scoring this season, led by three players (Jason Robertson, Wyatt Johnston and Matt Duchene) who scored at least 30 goals each. But you can never have enough scoring, and Rantenen has started finding the back of the net when his team needs him most—first in a Game 7, and then in stealing a game on the road against the Presidents’ Trophy-winning Jets. When pulling off a blockbuster deal at the trade deadline, you can't ask for a better outcome.
The best of Sports Illustrated
• Pat Forde explains why fixing the numerous problems with college sports isn’t something that President Trump can accomplish with the committee he’s reportedly assembling.
• After a couple of NFL draft picks made waves with their requests for retired jersey numbers, Conor Orr has an idea for another way for franchises to honor legendary players.
• Liam McKeone has three factors that will help the Warriors survive Stephen Curry's absence while he recovers from a hamstring injury.
• Bob Harig has the latest on some potential changes LIV Golf is mulling as it continues its quest to qualify for OWGR points.
• Max Mallow broke down how Paris Saint-Germain beat Arsenal to reach the Champions League final.
• The Celtics blew another 20-point lead to the Knicks and now trail 2–0 in the series as it shifts to New York.
• The Thunder smacked the Nuggets in Game 2, thanks to a playoff record 87 first-half points.
• Cubs shortstop Dansby Swanson and USWNT forward Mallory Swanson announced they are expecting their first child.
The top five…
… things I saw last night:
5. Yankees reliever Devin Williams’s reaction to getting a strikeout to escape a bases-loaded jam in the 10th inning. Williams has had a rough first year in New York, recently getting demoted from the closer role, but he kept his team alive on Wednesday.
4. A nifty assist down low by Karl-Anthony Towns.
3. Mitch Marner’s game-winning goal for the Maple Leafs. (Make sure you turn your sound on for the very satisfying ping off the post.)
2. Jorge Soler’s bases-clearing walk-off double for the Angels.
1. Mikal Bridges’s game-winning block on Jayson Tatum. That’s two games in a row that the Knicks have won thanks to a defensive play by Bridges.
This article was originally published on www.si.com as Mikko Rantanen’s Hot Streak Makes Stars Trade Look Like a Genius Move.