Criscuolo's First Career Hat Trick Lifts Comets Past Laval 5-2

After more than 600 professional games and 120-plus college contests at Harvard, Kyle Criscuolo still had one box left unchecked. On St. Patrick's Night at the Adirondack Bank Center, the 33-year-old center checked it emphatically, scoring in each period to record his first career professional hat trick and carry the Utica Comets to a 5-2 victory over the North Division-leading Laval Rocket.

Criscuolo opened the scoring at 7:45 of the first period, his 10th goal of the season, converting a backhand feed from Brian Halonen after Ethan Edwards pinched to keep the puck alive in the left corner. He snapped it inside the far post glove-side on Laval netminder Kaapo Kahkonen to give Utica the early lead. The Rocket responded when Jared Davidson stole the puck behind the Comets' net and fed Filip Mesar in the low slot, and Mesar fired one off the near post past Nico Daws to tie it at 13:14. Laval then grabbed a 2-1 advantage after two Utica miscues produced goals less than four minutes apart in the opening frame.

The Comets clawed back with Criscuolo's second-period goal to level the score, setting up a decisive third period. Just 1:50 into the final frame, Colton White broke into the zone on a give-and-go with Criscuolo, and when White's shot from the right side was stopped, Halonen and Jonathan Gruden swarmed the net. Criscuolo swatted home the rebound past a sprawling Kahkonen to complete the hat trick and put Utica ahead 3-2. He threw his arms wide in celebration. White earned the secondary assist on the goal, which was Criscuolo's 12th of the year.

The Comets then killed a penalty before the power play came their way. Three seconds after Luke Tuch was called for holding, Matyas Melovsky picked off a clear attempt and wristed an unassisted goal from the right circle past Kahkonen at 11:48 of the third, his fifth of the season, making it 4-2. Laval pulled Kahkonen in the final minutes hoping to claw back, but Angus Crookshank buried the empty-netter to seal the 5-2 final.

The win was the third straight in the season series played at Utica, and for the second consecutive game against Laval, the Comets scored first against a team that entered leading the AHL in scoring the opening goal. The two clubs have one regular-season meeting remaining. Criscuolo's wife, it turns out, knew what she was talking about.