The NHL season technically began about a week ago with a clash in Prague, but the ‘real’ opening event took place on Tuesday night with a pair of games. In the nightcap, the Las Vegas Golden Knights, hoping to bounce back from missing the playoffs last year, got a late win over the LA Kings thanks to a tiebreaking tally from Mark Stone with just 26 seconds on the clock. With overtime quickly approaching, the Kings made a mistake playing their way up the ice, and Stone made them pay with a rasping drive into the net.
In Tampa, meanwhile, the Lightning didn’t get their season off to the start they’d have hoped for as they fell 3-1 to the New York Rangers. Mika Zibanejad scored twice, once on in the second period to give his team the lead while they were shorthanded and once on a power play in the third to restore their lead, as they overcame a rival that took them out of the Stanley Cup Playoffs just a few months ago. The Lightning’s lone goal came when they were up two on a power play, so they will hope they can get their offense going as the season progresses.
