Zibanejad's Historic Hat Trick: Rangers Dominate Panthers in Miami Winter Classic
The New York Rangers made history at the 2026 Discover NHL Winter Classic, but it wasn't about breaking the record for the first outdoor game in Florida. Instead, it was all about Mika Zibanejad's incredible performance.
Zibanejad, named to Team Sweden for the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026 earlier in the day, became the first player to score a hat trick in a Winter Classic and set a new record with five points in an outdoor game. This led the Rangers to a 5-1 victory over the Florida Panthers, attracting a sold-out crowd of 36,153 to loanDepot park on Friday.
Zibanejad broke the previous record of four points set by Jordan Kyrou of the St. Louis Blues in the 2022 Winter Classic. His outstanding performance wasn't the only highlight.
Rangers forward Artemi Panarin had two goals and an assist, bringing his total career points in NHL outdoor games to seven (three goals, four assists), and tying him with four other players for the most in League history.
Alexis Lafreniere contributed three assists, and Igor Shesterkin made 36 saves for the Rangers, who improved to 6-0-0 in outdoor games, including a perfect 3-0-0 record in the Winter Classic.
However, the star of the night was undoubtedly Zibanejad, who achieved the fourth five-point game of his NHL career.
"Zibanejad's impact on this team is immeasurable," said New York coach Mike Sullivan. "He's the type of player who can lead us to victory."
Sam Reinhart and Sergei Bobrovsky represented the Panthers, who played their first outdoor game in front of a passionate crowd. The game-time temperature of 63.1 degrees Fahrenheit made it the warmest Winter Classic ever and the second-warmest NHL outdoor game, behind the 2016 Stadum Series at Coors Field in Denver (65 degrees).
The Panthers struggled without defenseman Seth Jones, who left the game with an upper-body injury after a hit from Lafreniere in the first period. Jones will be evaluated on Saturday, but the injury doesn't seem severe.
Zibanejad's power-play goal in the first period gave the Rangers a 1-0 lead. Lafreniere's assist on the play was his 116th power-play assist with New York, tying him with Chris Kreider and Camille Henry for the all-time Rangers lead.
The Rangers' power play was exceptional, going 2-for-3 on Friday and killing five of six penalties.
The Zibanejad-Panarin-Lafreniere line struck again just 1:04 later, making it 2-0. Panarin's long wrist shot appeared to hit Panthers forward Brad Marchand before finding its way through a screen set by Zibanejad.
The Rangers extended their lead to 3-0 in the second period, with Zibanejad scoring his second goal of the night, one-timing a pass from Lafreniere past Bobrovsky.
"Zibanejad was incredible," said New York defenseman Vladislav Gavrikov. "Five points, you can't beat that. He played great. What more can I say? He's a hero."
Reinhart scored on the power play in the third period, making it 3-1. The Panthers had a chance to narrow the gap, but the Rangers' penalty-killing prowess kept them in control.
Panarin scored on the power play to make it 4-1, and Zibanejad sealed the deal with a short-handed empty-net goal for the final score of 5-1.
Zibanejad's hat trick in an outdoor game made him the third player to achieve this feat, joining David Pastrnak (2021 NHL Outdoors at Lake Tahoe) and Tyler Toffoli (2020 Stadium Series).
"Winning these events makes them so much more enjoyable and memorable," Zibanejad said. "It's a great experience."
Notes: This was the 44th NHL outdoor game and 17th Winter Classic. The Rangers' six outdoor wins are the most by any team. New York has scored five goals in an outdoor game three times, the most among all teams. The Detroit Red Wings and Blues are the only other teams with multiple five-goal games outdoors. Panarin is tied with Henrik Zetterberg, Jonathan Toews, and James van Riemsdyk for the most career points in outdoor games. He also became the second player in NHL history with multiple three-point outdoor games, joining Zetterberg.
