From OT Chaos to Hat Tricks: The Power of "3" in Hockey
If you’ve been around hockey long enough, you start to notice some funny patterns. One of the weird ones is how often the number “3” seems to show up in moments people actually remember. It’s not scientific. It’s not deep analytics. It’s just one of those hockey things that keeps popping up when the lights get bright.
From Phaneuf to McDavid, #3 keeps popping up.
Take the captain’s number, for example. In Toronto, Dion Phaneuf, wearing No. 3, made it feel like that number carried a bit of weight. That was a tough era in Maple Leafs history in a lot of ways, but Phaneuf was right in the middle of it. He played big minutes, took on the spotlight, and dealt with everything that came with being a Maple Leafs captain. In a strange way, No. 3 became part of that identity for a while.
Then you’ve got 3-on-3 overtime, which might be the most chaotic thing the NHL has ever officially kept. It’s just pure hockey panic and beauty at the same time. One clean pass and suddenly it’s a breakaway. One bad change and the whole thing flips the other way. And if you’ve ever watched someone like Connor McDavid (who is #97) grab the puck in that kind of space, you know it feels like the game is on a knife-edge every shift.
Hat tricks might be the most important #3 event.
And of course, there’s the hat trick. Three goals in one night. Simple concept, but it never really gets old. Doesn’t matter if it’s a superstar doing superstar things or a depth guy catching fire for one unforgettable game. The third goal always hits different. That’s the one where the crowd starts buzzing before the puck even crosses the line.
Fans get so into it that hats go flying onto the ice—and they’re not coming back. A hat trick is one of those rare hockey achievements that still feels personal. Fans remember it. Players remember it. And the bench usually remembers it, too.
The #3 connects all these hockey events.
If you zoom out a bit, it’s kind of interesting how “3” connects all of this. Leadership numbers on jerseys. The fastest, most wide-open version of NHL overtime we’ve ever seen. And one of the most celebrated individual milestones in the game. None of it is planned. It’s just hockey doing its thing.
But maybe that’s the point. Hockey has a way of attaching meaning to simple numbers and moments. And “3” just happens to show up in a lot of the ones fans don’t forget. Call it a coincidence if you want. But around the NHL, the number 3 keeps finding its way into the stories people talk about long after the game is over.
[Note: I’d like to thank Brent Bradford (PhD) for his help co-authoring this post. His profile can be found at www.linkedin.com/in/brent-bradford-phd-3a10022a9]