Nine Seconds Of Fury: Bill Hicke’s Power-Play Explosion In 1969

On October 17, 1969, the Oakland Seals hosted the Los Angeles Kings at the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Arena, and the game barely had time to settle before chaos struck. Just 42 seconds after the opening faceoff, Kings forward Dennis Hextall was assessed back-to-back minors for hooking and tripping, handing Oakland an early four-minute power play.

Seals veteran Bill Hicke wasted no time making Los Angeles pay. At 1:27 of the first period, he beat Kings goaltender Gerry Desjardins for his first goal of the season, assisted by Bert Marshall and Mike Laughton. Before the Kings could regroup, the same trio stormed back down the ice and scored again just nine seconds later. The rapid-fire goals allowed Hextall to exit the penalty box, but the damage was already done.

Oakland kept the pressure on. At 7:57 of the opening frame, Hicke and Laughton set up Brian Perry to extend the lead to 3-0. The Seals would cruise to a 5-1 victory in one of their most explosive early-game performances of the season.

The two goals in nine seconds stood as a Seals team record and marked Hicke’s only three-point game of the 1969-70 campaign. He finished the year with 15 goals in 69 games. Power-play production was nothing new for Hicke, just two seasons earlier, 12 of his 21 goals had come with the man advantage.

Over the course of his career in the National Hockey League, Hicke appeared in 729 regular season and 42 playoff games with the Montreal Canadiens, New York Rangers, the Seals, and the Pittsburgh Penguins. He captured two Stanley Cup championships with Montreal, contributing in limited playoff action during the 1958-59 and 1959-60 seasons.

The California Golden Seals: A Tale of White Skates, Red Ink, and One of the NHL's Most Outlandish Teams

Discover the fascinating and unconventional story of the California Golden Seals — one of the NHL’s most memorable and unusual franchises.

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Eight Seconds of History: Lafontaine’s Record-Breaking Night for the Islanders

Pat Lafontaine wasted little time making history during his first full NHL season with the New York Islanders.

The 1984-85 campaign marked Lafontaine’s first complete year in the league after joining the Islanders late in 1983-84, fresh off representing the United States at the Winter Olympics. Limited to just 67 of New York’s 80 games, Lafontaine still managed 19 goals, including a blistering two-goal burst that rewrote the Islanders’ record book.

On February 16, 1985, the Islanders hosted the Hartford Whalers at Nassau Coliseum. Despite sitting at -opposite ends of the standings, Hartford proved stubborn, and the game ultimately ended in a 4-4 tie.

With the Islanders trailing 3-1, Lafontaine struck at 8:53 of the second period, beating goaltender Greg Millen with assists from Tomas Jonsson and Dave Langevin. Just eight seconds later, at 9:01, Lafontaine struck again, this time assisted by Pat Flatley and Greg Gilbert, tying the game and setting a new franchise record for the fastest two goals by a single player.

The previous Islanders record of 10 seconds had been set by Clark Gillies during the 1974-75 season. Lafontaine’s eight-second burst erased it.

Both teams traded goals in the third period, and the game finished deadlocked at four, but the night belonged to the young Islanders center.

Lafontaine went on to compile an extraordinary NHL career, scoring 468 regular-season goals in just 865 games between 1983-84 and 1997-98 with the New York Islanders and Buffalo Sabres. He recorded six consecutive seasons with at least 41 goals, including two 50-goal campaigns, 54 goals with the Islanders in 1989-90 and 53 with the Sabres in 1992-93, cementing his legacy as one of the era’s most dangerous scorers.

Stories From The Epic History Of NHL Hockey (Volume IV)

Dive into unforgettable tales from NHL history — the biggest moments, legendary players, and classic rivalries.

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