Morgan Geekie’s First Career Hat Trick Helps Bruins Edge Out Golden Knights

BOSTON — Morgan Geekie netted his first career NHL hat trick in the Boston Bruins 5-4 win over the reigning Stanley Cup champion Vegas Golden Knights at TD Garden on Thursday night.

It couldn’t have come at a better time for the Bruins, who returned to the Garden licking their wounds after losing three of four on their most recent road trip and had just three wins in all of February before closing out the month with a W.

“It’s something that you don’t ever really think about coming into the game,” Geekie said. “But, it’s always fun, especially when you get two points.”

GEEKS FIRST CAREER HATTY 🤓🎩 pic.twitter.com/UrXOvgNbi2

— Boston Bruins (@NHLBruins) March 1, 2024

Geekie, who signed a two-year, $4 million contract with Boston in the offseason, has made an immediate impact. He now has 13 goals and 17 assists for 30 points in his first season donning the Spoked-B. His performance Thursday night helped Boston avoid what would have been a seventh straight overtime game after the B’s blew leads of 3-0 and 4-2.

“It was good to close that one out,” he said. “Especially the way we’ve finished the last couple of games.”

Geekie potted two of his three goals in the first period, helping the Bruins jump out to the 3-0 lead at the end of the frame. The tally that clinched the hat trick came in the second period during Vegas’ push to make a comeback.

“I feel live we’ve been starting games well the last few games,” Geekie said. “We just got to learn to close things out. You’ve seen a few games of ours slip away in the last couple. We kind of let (Vegas) back in it when we had our foot on the gas a little bit, and we let off.

“They’re a good team. They’re going to come back. I think it just speaks to our character as a team trying to close in on those details and close games out. Those are important points down the line, and when we can do it in regulation, it’s always nice.”

Geekie and the Bruins will look to build a winning streak when they head to New York to take on the Islanders on Saturday night. Puck drop from USB Arena is slated for 7:30 p.m. ET, and you can catch all the action on NESN, following an hour of pregame coverage.