May 6: Leach ties playoff record with five-goal game for Flyers

THIS DATE IN HISTORY: May 6
1976:
Reggie Leach
ties a single-game playoff record by scoring five goals in the Philadelphia Flyers'
6-3 series-clinching victory
against the Boston Bruins at the Spectrum in Game 5 of the Semifinals.

Leach scores once in the first period, has three consecutive goals in the second and scores again in the third, giving him five goals on seven shots. He equals the mark set by
Maurice Richard
of the Montreal Canadiens in 1944 and matched by
Darryl Sittler
of the Toronto Maple Leafs two weeks before Leach did it.
The record-tying performance extends Leach's goal-scoring streak to nine games, also a playoff record.
"I was in the right place at the right time," Leach says after the game, according to The New York Times. "Once you get going, you get all the confidence in the world. I started thinking after the first goal that all I had to do way shoot and I'd score."
MORE MOMENTS
1973:
Ken Dryden
makes 19 saves for the Montreal Canadiens in a
4-0 victory against the Chicago Blackhawks
in Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Final at Chicago Stadium. It's the first of Dryden's 10 career playoff shutouts and gives the Canadiens a 3-1 lead in the best-of-7 series.
1976:The Canadiens start a streak of 11 consecutive playoff victories by
defeating the New York Islanders 5-2
at the Forum in Game 5 of their Semifinal series. Montreal sweeps Philadelphia in the 1976 Cup Final and doesn't lose another playoff game until April 28, 1977, when the
Islanders win 5-3
at Nassau Coliseum.
1982: The Vancouver Canucks advance to the Stanley Cup Final for the first time by
defeating the Blackhawks 6-2
in Game 5 of the Campbell Conference Final at Chicago Stadium. Defenseman
Lars Lindgren
sets up three of the Canucks' six goals, the most they've scored in a playoff game to that time.
Richard Brodeur
makes 36 saves for the Canucks, who get third-period goals by
Darcy Rota
,
Stan Smyl
and
Ivan Boldirev
to put the game away.
1988:
Ray Bourque
ties a playoff record with three second-period assists for the Boston Bruins in a
6-1 victory
against the New Jersey Devils in Game 3 of the Wales Conference Final in East Rutherford, New Jersey.
1994:
Ulf Dahlen
scores three goals for his first playoff hat trick and the first in the history of the San Jose Sharks in a
5-2 victory against the Toronto Maple Leafs
in Game 3 of the Western Conference Semifinals at San Jose Arena. Dahlen scores twice in San Jose's three-goal second period and finishes his hat trick by scoring late in the third.

1995:
Joe Sakic
completes a hat trick by scoring at 19:22 of the third period to give the Quebec Nordiques a
5-4 victory
against the New York Rangers in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals at the Colisee. Sakic starts Quebec's comeback from down 4-2 by scoring his second goal at 9:44 of the third period and completes it by beating Rangers goalie
Mike Richter
for the win.

2010:
Johan Franzen
of the Detroit Red Wings scores the second-fastest three goals from the start of a game in playoff history in a
7-1 win against the Sharks
in Game 4 of the Western Conference Semifinals at Joe Louis Arena. Franzen completes a natural hat trick in a span of 3:26 by scoring 11:16 into the game; only
Mario Lemieux
of the Pittsburgh Penguins (three goals in the first 6:55 on
April 25, 1989
) has a faster playoff hat trick. Franzen has two assists before scoring a third-period power-play goal to complete a four-goal, six-point night.
2012:
Martin Brodeur
celebrates his 40th birthday by making 20 saves to help the New Jersey Devils to a
4-2 victory against the Flyers
in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals at Prudential Center. He becomes the oldest goalie to start a Stanley Cup Playoff game on his birthday, surpassing
Tony Esposito
,
who shuts out the St. Louis Blues 2-0 on April 23, 1982
, his 39th birthday. Brodeur also becomes the first goalie to play in a playoff game as a teenager and a 40-year-old.

2015:Tyler Johnson scores with 1.1 seconds remaining in the third period to give the Tampa Bay Lightning a
2-1 victory
against the Canadiens at Bell Centre in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Second Round. Johnson's buzzer-beater gives the Lightning a 3-0 series lead and is Tampa Bay's eighth consecutive win against Montreal during the 2014-15 season.
2018:The Vegas Golden Knights become the third team in NHL history to win multiple playoff series in its inaugural season by
defeating the Sharks 3-0
at SAP Center in Game 6 of the Western Conference Second Round. The Golden Knights join the 1918 Toronto Arenas and the 1968 St. Louis Blues as first-year teams to win multiple postseason series. Marc-Andre Fleury makes 28 saves for his 14th playoff shutout, moving him into a tie for sixth on the NHL's all-time list.

2019: The Bruins advance to the Eastern Conference Final with a
3-0 victory against the Columbus Blue Jackets
at Nationwide Arena in Game 6 of their second-round series. Tuukka Rask makes 39 saves for his second shutout in a series-clinching game; the other comes in 2013. The Bruins' next opponent will be the Carolina Hurricanes; the former New England rivals haven't played in the postseason since 2009.