CHICAGO, Dec. 27 (UPI) -- Patrick Sharp recorded a hat trick on his 32nd birthday Friday, sending Chicago to a 7-2 blasting of Colorado.
Chicago came up with the first five goals of the game, three of them by Sharp who reached 21 for the season. He also had an assist as part of the Blackhawks' second straight victory.
Chicago moved past idle Anaheim into the NHL's top spot with 60 points.
Sharp opened the scoring 12:27 into the game and added a power-play goal in the final minute of the first period to give the Blackhawks a 3-0 lead. His third goal came just 27 seconds into the middle period.
Jonathan Toews added two goals and two assists for the Blackhawks, winners out seven out of nine.
Antti Raanta had little trouble picking up the win, making 18 saves. Jean-Sebastien Gigure gave up all seven Chicago goals on 24 shots through two periods. Semyon Varlamov replaced Giguere to start the third.
Colorado completed a three-game road trip with an 0-3 mark.
