Flyers center Scott Laughton was filled with pride when his second goal of the game marked his 100th career goal.
Laughton achieved another big milestone — he scored two empty-net goals to tie Philadelphia’s team record with four goals in a game, leading the Flyers to a 4-1 win over Detroit on Thursday night.
“Kind of get my game going, hopefully,” Laughton said. “It was an awesome night.”
After scoring just once in his previous 25 games, Laughton had his second career hat trick and became the first Flyers player to score four goals in a game since John LeClair in 2002.
Laughton is the 10th Flyers player to score four goals in a game, making it the 17th time a player has scored four goals.
“For Scotty Laughton, you always hope good things happen for him,” said coach John Tortorella. “He works so hard. He’s the reason we won the game.”
Laughton was welcomed with a standing ovation by his teammates in the locker room, who then surrounded him in celebration. They gave him a pro wrestling championship belt with the Flyers logo stamped on it.
Laughton, 30, made his NHL debut with the Flyers in January 2013, and he scored his first two goals the hard way.
He scored the first goal in the second period with a breakaway slap shot from the left circle. His second goal came in the third period when he tipped in a pass from Travis Konecny while crashing into the crease on a short-handed play.
Laughton has been a reliable presence for the Flyers for more than a decade but never scored more than 18 goals in a season. He had only three goals this season for a Flyers team that seems ready to end a long rebuilding phase and compete for their first playoff spot since 2020.
His first career hat trick was on February 7, 2021, against Washington.
“I think 100 goals, you don’t look at it really, but I’ve been in the league for a long time and it’s hard to score goals in this league,” Laughton said. “To score 100, it’s pretty cool to me, pretty special. I know it’s not much compared to some guys, but it feels pretty cool to get that.”
His last two goals were the empty-netters in the final 70 seconds of the game.
“It’s pretty cool,” Laughton said. “Two empty-netters but I know they all count.”
