MONTREAL - Vincent Damphousse clicked for an unorthodox hat trick Tuesday:

He celebrated his 35th birthday. He did it in his hometown, in front of family and friends. And he contributed to the Sharks' 3-1 victory over his former club by winning the faceoff that led to the first goal.

``This was great,'' the center said. ``We're getting the day off tomorrow. I'm going to go home tonight and I'm going to be able to spend time with my family.''

Damphousse took a team-high 17 faceoffs and won nine. He beat Saku Koivu in the left circle on the opening shift, and the Sharks worked the puck around. Mike Rathje completed the sequence by snapping a shot over the shoulder of goaltender Jeff Hackett.