Strathclair's Morgan Geekie scored twice and added an assist, leading the Carolina Hurricanes to a 6-2 win over the Pittsburgh Penguins in his National Hockey League debut in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania on Sunday afternoon.
The effort marked just the second time a player with the Hurricanes/Hartford Whalers franchise had notched three points in their debut and the first since 1981.
Following the win, Geekie was joined by family for a memorable post-game interview that saw father and former Brandon Wheat King defenceman Craig Geekie present with the puck from goal number one:
The former 3rd round draft choice of the Hurricanes had 22 goals and 42 points in 55 games in his sophomore season with Carolina's AHL affiliate Charlotte Checkers at the time of his Saturday call-up. Prior to that the 21-year old had 202 points in 216 games with the Western Hockey League's Tri-City Americans.
The one-time Manitoba AAA Yellowhead Chief is no stranger to finding the scoresheet in debuts, having notched an assist in his first AHL game in 2018, a goal in an initial WHL call-up in 2014 and two points in the first of two MJHL games in 2014.
Carolina also features Brandon-born Jordan Martinook, who had two assists in the game himself on Geekie's wing. Brandon's Joel Edmundson, in the midst of a career-best 20-point season on the Canes' defence, was held scoreless in the contest.
Geekie's call-up and subsequent addition to the lineup coincided with an injury to Hurricane forward Ryan Dzingel on Saturday. The win has the Hurricanes tied with the New York Islanders for the Eastern Conference's final Wild Card playoff spot with 15 games remaining on their schedule.
Photo: Tri-City Americans/Doug Love