Mark Stone scored the go-ahead goal early in the third period, and Robin Lehner made 20 saves as the Vegas Golden Knights secured a 5-2 win over the Anaheim Ducks in their season opener on Thursday night.
With this victory, the Golden Knights improved their record to 9-2-2 against the Ducks since joining the NHL in 2017.
Jonathan Marchessault, Tomas Nosek, Max Pacioretty, and Alex Tuch also contributed goals for Vegas.
The game-winning play came when Alex Pietrangelo fired a shot wide, allowing Chandler Stephenson to collect the rebound and feed it to Stone, who hammered home a one-timer to give Vegas a 3-2 lead just moments into the third period.
Stone then added a highlight-reel assist, stealing the puck in the neutral zone, fending off a defender, and diving to poke the puck to Pacioretty, who fired a shot through John Gibson’s five-hole to extend the lead to 4-2.
“We didn’t like how the second period felt,” said Vegas coach Peter DeBoer. “We wanted to take control in the third, and Stone led the way. That’s why he’s our captain. He has the ability to elevate his play at crucial moments, and that’s what you need from your leader.”
Anaheim’s Maxime Comtois scored both Ducks’ goals in the first 7:58 of the game, marking the fastest two goals to open a season by an NHL player in over 15 years. John Gibson made 24 saves for the Ducks.
With no fans in attendance due to COVID-19 restrictions, the Golden Knights recreated their usual high-energy atmosphere to boost their performance. It seemed to work, as they quickly took a 1-0 lead when Alec Martinez set up Marchessault, who skated in and beat Gibson with a shot to the top corner just 1:07 into the game.
Less than two minutes later, Ryan Reaves intercepted a pass behind the net and fed Nosek, who one-timed the puck past Gibson to make it 2-0 for Vegas.
Anaheim fought back, with Comtois scoring his first on a pass from Sam Steel and tying the game later in the period after Ryan Getzlaf’s relentless forecheck set up Comtois for his second goal.
“We hadn’t played in nine months,” Comtois said. “We need to review what went well and what didn’t. We know we can compete with these guys; we showed that in the first and second periods. Now, we must maintain it for a full 60 minutes.”
Game Notes:
- Anaheim had won three consecutive season openers before this loss.
- Alex Tuch, who has been with the Golden Knights since their inception, celebrated his first opening night with the team by scoring an empty-net goal. Tuch had previously missed season openers due to starting in the AHL in 2017 and being injured the past two seasons.
- Mark Stone wore the captain’s C for the first time in Golden Knights history. Reilly Smith and Alex Pietrangelo were named assistant captains.
- Ryan Getzlaf’s assist moved him into a tie for seventh place with Nicklas Backstrom among active NHL players with 927 points since the 2006-07 season. Getzlaf also ranks fifth in assists during that period.
- Keegan Kolesar was the extra forward for Vegas, playing just 4 minutes and 36 seconds and being on the ice for both of Anaheim’s goals.
Up Next:
- The Ducks and Golden Knights will complete their two-game series Saturday at T-Mobile Arena. The teams will face off seven more times this season as part of the realigned West Division, including the Arizona Coyotes, Colorado Avalanche, Los Angeles Kings, Minnesota Wild, San Jose Sharks, and St. Louis Blues.