Mikko Rantanen's revenge Game 7 hat-trick against former team Avalanche was 'personal fire,' claims analyst

Mikko Rantanen started the year as an integral member of the Colorado Avalanche. On Saturday night, he ended their season as a member of the Dallas Stars. The hockey star recorded a Game 7 hat trick to send his former team packing.

On First Up, Carlo Colaiacovo and Aaron Korolnek discussed with TSN insider Darren Dreger the poetic way that the series between the Stars and Avalanche ended.

Colaiacovo said (7:44):

"I cannot imagine a better feeling as an athlete than this revenge that he was able to exert onto his former club that traded him than scoring a third hat trick in Game 7 to eliminate Colorado."

He also said that Rantanen is statistically one of the best playoff performers in NHL history, but this may have been his magnum opus.

Dreger added that the only thing better might be to win the Stanley Cup title, but it doesn't get much better in terms of first-round series. He continued, saying that it felt personal for the forward. Dreger said it seemed as if he was sending a message to everyone in Colorado:

"Now I'm here, and I'm going to do my job, which is to help shepherd us into Round 2 of the playoffs. And yeah, there was, there was, there was added value for me, because, as I said, I think there was some, some personal fire in that."

Rantanen was traded to the Carolina Hurricanes, but they couldn't extend him, so they flipped him to the Stars.

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Mikko Rantanen discusses decisive hat trick

Mikko Rantanen was one of the Colorado Avalanche's best players for a long time. In the ongoing Stanley Cup Playoffs, he was their greatest enemy. He scored a hat trick en route to four unanswered team goals that decided their series in Game 7.

Mikko Rantanen ousted the Avalanche (Imagn)

The Dallas Stars forward said, via ESPN, after the game:

"Obviously, the feeling was incredible to win a series. This series was not exactly what I expected. I expected a seven-game series, even before Game 1. The ups and downs in the series... Belief was there with the group the whole time. Obviously, I was able to make a play to get the first one and the crowd started to roll."

Rantanen also added an assist on the fourth goal, so he was involved in all of the Stars' goals in the decisive game.