The expansion Washington Capitals endured a historically difficult debut season in 1974-75. Washington won just eight of 80 games, scored an NHL-low 181 goals and surrendered a staggering 446. Yet, even in a season filled with losses, there were milestones to celebrate. One of those came courtesy of Ron Lalonde, who became the first player in franchise history to record a hat trick.
Highlights
March 30, 1975: Washington hosted Detroit in its 77th game of the season.
Ron Lalonde scored the first hat trick in Washington Capitals history.
Lalonde scored Washington's third, fourth and fifth goals.
Bob Gryp assisted on all three goals.
Washington held a 5-2 lead before Detroit mounted its comeback.
Marcel Dionne scored twice late in the second period.
Bill Hogaboam scored twice just 12 seconds apart in the third.
Detroit ultimately won 8-5.
It was the only hat trick of Lalonde's NHL career.
Lalonde had arrived in Washington on December 15, 1974, when the Capitals acquired him from the Pittsburgh Penguins in exchange for Lew Morrison. He wasn't expected to suddenly transform one of the NHL's weakest offences, but on March 30, 1975, he provided a glimpse of what the young franchise desperately needed.
Hosting the Detroit Red Wings in their 77th game of the season, the Capitals surprisingly built a 5-2 lead past the halfway point. Lalonde scored Washington's third, fourth and fifth goals, giving him his ninth, tenth and eleventh goals of the season. All three came against Detroit goaltender Terry Richardson, and remarkably, Bob Gryp assisted on each of Lalonde's goals.
Unfortunately for Washington, the historic hat trick wasn't enough. Marcel Dionne began Detroit's comeback at 17:33 of the second period, just 31 seconds after Lalonde completed his hat trick. Dionne scored again before the intermission, cutting Washington's advantage to 5-4. The Red Wings then scored four unanswered goals in the third period to turn what had looked like a rare Capitals victory into an 8-5 defeat. Bill Hogaboam contributed two of those goals just 12 seconds apart.
Lalonde would never record another NHL hat trick, making his historic performance against Detroit the only three-goal game of his career. He appeared in 397 NHL regular season games between 1972-73 and 1978-79 with Pittsburgh and Washington, scoring 45 goals and 123 points without appearing in a Stanley Cup playoff game. Originally selected by Pittsburgh in the fourth round of the 1972 NHL Amateur Draft after playing junior hockey with the Peterborough Petes, Lalonde secured a permanent place in Capitals history on an otherwise forgettable night for the expansion club.
Washington Capitals: Team History
A look back at the history of the Washington Capitals — from expansion years to modern success.
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