October 22, 2009
Former Musketeer forward Stephane Da Costa scored five goals in his second collegiate game. (USHL Images)
It didn't take long for Stephane Da Costa to get settled into his freshman season at Merrimack College. The former Sioux City Musketeers forward scored five goals in just his second game for the school.
Da Costa scored three goals in the first period for a "natural hat trick" vs. Army on Saturday. In the third period, he netted two more goals for the five-goal night. His accomplishment earned him honors as the Hockey East Player of the Week. The native of Paris, France made his debut the previous night recording two shots in a 3-1 win vs. Holy Cross before firing 11 shots during his record-breaking performance on Saturday.
Da Costa's performance in the history books:
- first Hockey East player since Brian Gionta, Boston College (1/27/01 vs. Maine) to score five goals in a game.
- first player to score five goals and get a natural hat trick as part of his first collegiate goal in Hockey East history
- first Merrimack player to score five goals since Merrimack joined Hockey East 21 years ago.
- most goals by a Hockey East freshman since Joe Flanagan, University of New Hampshire (1/3/89 at Lowell)
- his three power play goals are the tied for the second most in NCAA history and the most since November 6, 2005.
- first Merrimack hat trick at home since 2003 and hat trick anywhere since 2005
- his 11 shots on goals are the most by a Warrior since at least 2001.
Da Costa played two seasons in the USHL for the Musketeers. He ranked fifth in League scoring during the 2008-09 season with 67 points (31g, 36a) in 48 games played on his way to being named to the All-USHL Second Team. He posted a League season high 13-game point streak (11/26/08-1/24/09) in which he scored 24 points (7g, 17a) and equaled the USHL season high with 11 shots on January 10th, 2009. Da Costa led the USHL in shots on goal (236) and ranked second in both power play goals (14) and game-winning goals (6). The 2009 USHL All-Star Game selection ended the regular season on a six-game point streak which included five multi-point games and a hat trick on April 3rd, 2009, his third hat trick of the season.
Click here for more on Da Costa's performance, including audio, from College Hockey News.
Click here for Da Costa's USHL profile
Headquartered in Chicago, Illinois, the USHL celebrates its 31st season of elite junior hockey in 2009-10. With over 150 players already committed to NCAA Division I schools and 13 NHL Entry Draft picks currently on League rosters, the USHL is the nation's foremost producer of junior hockey talent. For more information, visit us on the web at www.USHL.com.
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