"It was one of those nights when the pucks bounced my way, and, as far as I can remember, I've never scored a hat trick before, so it feels cool," Ekholm told the media afterwards, according to Aftonbladet.
In the final seconds, Ekholm scored his third goal of the night into an empty net. The home fans then threw caps onto the ice, causing a stoppage in play - just as tradition dictates when a player completes a hat trick.
The unusual thing was that it was 35-year-old Mattias Ekholm who was at the center.
"If it happened before, it was in childhood and it will probably never happen again," he said after the 7-4 victory.
Ekholm has not been selected for Tre Kronor's Olympic squad, but is tipped to be a good fit to replace the injured Jonas Brodin.
