April 4: Hurricanes, Panthers play final NHL tie game

THIS DATE IN HISTORY: April 4
2004:
Brad Fast
makes the only NHL game of his career one to remember. Not only does the 24-year-old Carolina Hurricanes defenseman score a goal, he gets what proves to be the last game-tying goal in NHL history. Fast scores at 17:34 of the third period to give the Hurricanes a
6-6 tie with the Florida Panthers
at Office Depot Center.

Fast, recalled from Lowell of the American Hockey League for Carolina's season finale, takes a pass from
Rod Brind'Amour
and beats Florida goalie Roberto Luongo to get the Hurricanes even after they've blown a 4-0 lead.
With the adoption of the shootout after the 2004-05 season is cancelled by a lockout, Fast's goal stands as the last tying goal in an NHL game.
MORE MOMENTS
1921:The Ottawa Senators become the first NHL team to win the Stanley Cup in back-to-back seasons when they defeat the Vancouver Millionaires of the Pacific Coast Hockey Association
2-1 in the decisive fifth game
of
the Final
.
Jack Darragh
scores twice for the Senators.
1944:
Maurice Richard
makes his debut in the Stanley Cup Final and has an assist on the game-winning goal in the Montreal Canadiens'
5-1 victory against the Chicago Blackhawks
in Game 1. He finishes with five goals and seven points in
Montreal's four-game sweep
.

1961:Montreal's hopes for a sixth straight Stanley Cup come to an end when the Canadiens lose
3-0 to the Chicago Blackhawks
in Game 6 of the Semifinals. The 4-2 series loss marks the first time since 1950 that the Canadiens fail to qualify for the Final. The Blackhawks go on
to defeat
the Detroit Red Wings for their first championship since
1938
.
1971: The final night of the 1970-71 season is a memorable one for two NHL legends.
Jean Beliveau
plays the 1,125th and final regular-season game of his career, all with Montreal, in a
7-2 road loss
to the Boston Bruins. He retires a few weeks later after helping the Canadiens win the Stanley Cup.
Gordie Howe
appears in his 1,687th regular-season game, all with the Red Wings, in the New York Rangers'
6-0 victory
at Madison Square Garden. Howe also announces his retirement and is elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1972. However, he comes back to play six seasons in the World Hockey Association before returning to the NHL in 1979-80, when he plays 80 regular-season and three playoff games for the Hartford Whalers, then retires for good.
1973: The Blackhawks become the first team in NHL history to have two players score three goals in the same playoff game.
Pit Martin
and
Dick Redmond
each get hat tricks in a
7-1 win against the St. Louis Blues
at Chicago Stadium.
Stan Mikita
has five assists.
1976:The
California Seals defeat the Los Angeles Kings 5-2
at the Oakland Coliseum in the final NHL game played in the San Francisco Bay Area until the San Jose Sharks join the League in 1991.
Jim Moxey
scores into an empty net at 19:58 of the third period for the final goal in Seals history. They move to Cleveland for the 1976-77 season.
1979:
Ken Dryden
becomes the first goalie to win at least 30 games in each of his first seven NHL seasons. Dryden gets his 30th and final win of the 1978-79 season in the Canadiens'
4-1 victory against the Red Wings
at the Forum. He retires a few weeks later after helping the
Canadiens win the Stanley Cup
for the fourth consecutive year.

1987:
Denis Potvin
of the New York Islanders scores two goals in a
6-6 tie with the Buffalo Sabres
at Nassau Coliseum to become the first defenseman (and 21st player) in NHL history to have 1,000 points in his career. The milestone comes when he scores the game-tying goal with 17 seconds left in the third period. Potvin retires after the 1987-88 season with 1,052 points, the most by a defenseman at the time.
1990: Los Angeles Kings defenseman
Larry Robinson
takes the ice in the Stanley Cup Playoffs for an 18th consecutive season, an NHL record. The visiting
Kings defeat the Calgary Flames 5-3
in the opener of their Smythe Division Semifinal series. Robinson, a member of six Stanley Cup-winning teams during his 17 seasons with the Montreal Canadiens, adds two more years to his streak. He finishes his career in 1992 having never missed the playoffs during his 20 seasons in the NHL. Red Wings defenseman
Nicklas Lidstrom
equals Robinson's record run in 2012, his final NHL season.

2001:Two future Hockey Hall of Famers each reaches the 50-goal mark for the second time in his careers.
Joe Sakic
gets No. 50 when he scores the only goal for the Colorado Avalanche in a
1-1 tie against the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim
at Pepsi Center.
Jaromir Jagr
scores Nos. 50 and 51 for the Pittsburgh Penguins in a
4-2 home win against the Tampa Bay Lightning
.
2003: Columbus Blue Jackets goalie
Marc Denis
sets an NHL single-season record for minutes played in a
5-5 tie against the Red Wings
at Nationwide Arena. Denis finishes the game with 4,451 minutes, surpassing the mark of 4,443 set by
Martin Brodeur
of the New Jersey Devils in 1995-96. He finishes the season having played 4,510:55 -- but Brodeur regains the record in 2003-04 and establishes the current mark of 4,696:33 in 2006-07.
2017:The Bruins qualify for the playoffs for the first time since 2014 by
defeating the Tampa Bay Lightning 4-0
at TD Garden. Tuukka Rask makes 28 saves and David Pastrnak scores two goals for the Bruins, who win their sixth in a row.
2019: The Carolina Hurricanes clinch their first playoff berth since 2009 with a
3-1 victory against the Devils
at PNC Arena. Petr Mrazek makes 36 saves for Carolina. Only the Edmonton Oilers and Florida Panthers have had longer droughts.
On the same night, the Pittsburgh Penguins clinch a playoff berth for the 13th consecutive season, the longest active run in the NHL, with a
4-1 victory against the Red Wings
at PPG Paints Arena. Also, the Washington Capitals lock up their fourth consecutive division title by
defeating the Canadiens 2-1
at Capital One Arena.