Tyler Seguin scores natural hat trick as Stars top Flyers during hat giveaway

Tyler Seguin made the most of the Dallas Stars' free hat giveaway, scoring three consecutive goals in the second period. (Glenn James/NHLI via Getty Images)

By Michael Blinn

The Dallas Stars celebrated AT&T Free Hat Night in style, exploding for four goals in the second period - three of them from 21-year-old Tyler Seguin.

His first goal came just :39 into the second period, his second at 17:03, and he made it a natural hat trick just 40 seconds later, giving him a whole bunch of hats that are presumably all branded with the AT&T logo (none, however, are as stylish as the team's player-of-the-game cowboy hat).

Seguin also assisted on Valeri Nichuskin's fourth goal of the season just :22 later, as the Stars piled up three goals against the Flyers in a span of just 1:02, chasing Philly goalie Steve Mason.

It was the second hat trick of the season for the 21-year-old Seguin, who scored four times against Calgary on Nov. 14, but hadn't scored in six games while also missing a pair with concussion-like symptoms. He now has a 15-12-27 line in 26 games on the season, with three game-winners and a pretty outrageous 18.5 shooting percentage.

The boom-or-bust season is echoed by the rest of the Stars, who sit at 14-9-5, in fifth place in the seven-team Central Division, and are mired in 10th in the ultra-competitive Western Conference. The team is hopeful that Seguin, the former No. 2 overall pick in 2010 acquired in a blockbuster offseason trade with Boston, can find consistency in Dallas and showcase the talent and touch that made him a mouth-watering prospect in juniors and a star during the Bruins' march to the Stanley Cup in 2011. He's a co-focal point of a young, talented roster alongside 24-year-old winger Jamie Benn, 23-year-old forward Alex Chiasson, 23-year-old defenseman Brenden Dillon, and 10th overall pick in the 2013 NHL Draft, 18-year-old Valeri Nichushkin, who is finding his groove after a slow start.

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Stars' 5-1 win on Saturday