LATEST | Big Z avenges his teammates, drops Josh Manson: Completes a rare feat in the process

While they may have lost, Vancouver Canucks defenceman Nikita Zadorov played a significant role on Wednesday night and stood out in a big way.

During the second period, Zadorov dropped the mitts with Colorado Avalanche defenceman Josh Manson after the latter hit J.T. Miller in the head in the opening frame, only receiving a two-minute minor on the play.


In doing so, by dropping the mitts, Zadorov recorded the first Gordie Howe hat trick of his National Hockey League career. If you aren't familiar with the term 'Gordie Howe hat trick', it means when a player records a goal, an assist and a fight all in the same game.





After the game, it was revealed that for the first time in 26 years, the Canucks had more than one player record a Gordie Howe hat trick in the same season, with Zadorov and Dakota Joshua each tallying one this year. The last time that happened was during the 1997-98 season with Todd Bertuzzi, Brad May, Gino Odjick and Donald Brashear.



Nikita Zadorov has shown at times during his tenure with the Canucks, that he can be a leader and has been very valuable to the team since Patrik Allvin acquired him from the Calgary Flames in late-November. In 40 games with Vancouver, Zadorov has ten points (three goals, seven assists), 73 penalty minutes and is a plus-nine.