Golden Knights Open Season X With 5-2 Win Over Blackhawks

The Vegas Golden Knights posted a 5-2 victory over the Chicago Blackhawks on Opening Knight of Season X on Tuesday at T-Mobile Arena.

HOW IT WENT DOWN
Victor Olofsson struck first on the power play, giving the Golden Knights a 1-0 lead with 9:30 remaining in the first period. Jack Eichel skated the puck through the neutral zone and fed it to Olofsson as he launched a wrist shot far side past Spencer Knight. In his NHL debut, Trevor Connelly extended the Golden Knights lead to 2-0 with less than five minutes remaining in the opening frame. Brayden McNabb fired a shot from the blue line, and Connelly deflected and controlled the puck before lifting it into the net to record his first-career goal. With 7:37 left in the middle period, Jordan Greenway found the back of the net to cut the Golden Knights lead to 2-1. Less than three minutes later, Eichel restored the home side's two-goal lead, scoring off a centering pass from Ivan Barbashev as he tapped the puck into the net for the 3-1 score.

At 4:04 in the final period, Patrick Kane pulled the Blackhawks within one, but 39 seconds later Noah Hanifin responded to extend the Vegas advantage to 4-2. From the right circle, Nic Dowd sent a backhand pass between his and Sam Rinzel's legs to Hanifin, who controlled the puck and fired a shot passed Knight at 4:43 in the third frame. With less than three minutes remaining, Mark Stone sealed the 5-2 victory for the Golden Knights with an empty-net goal. Carter Hart stopped 24 out of 26 shots to post a .923 save percentage and lift Vegas to their first win of the regular season.

TOP PERFORMERS
Jack Eichel: Recorded the game-winning goal plus two assists to register his first multi-point game of the season.

Victor Olofsson: Opened the game with the first Golden Knights goal of the 2026-27 season in his return to the team after previously spending 2024-25 in Vegas.

Trevor Connelly: Scored his first NHL goal, becoming the second youngest Golden Knight (Cody Glass – Oct 2, 2019) to find the back of the net in his NHL debut.

Noah Hanifin: Netted his first goal of the season in the final frame.

VGK STATS OF THE KNIGHT

Jack Eichel recorded his 700th career point with a second period goal, becoming the ninth American-born player to reach that milestone in less than 700 NHL games.

Eichel became the third player in NHL history to record a three-point night in three consecutive season openers.

The Golden Knights extended their season opener point streak to eight games (7-0-1), the longest active point streak in NHL history. 

Trevor Connelly became the fourth Golden Knight and second youngest player in franchise history to score a goal in his NHL debut.

Shea Theodore registered his second multi-assist night in a season opener, which is the second most recorded by any Vegas player.

Head Coach Ryan Craig earned his first NHL victory behind the bench.

Brayden McNabb, Ivan Barbashev, Theodore and Eichel all skated away with multi-assist nights.

Marc Gatcomb tallied the most hits of the night with eight.

ATTENDANCE: 17,838

WHEN VGK WINS, YOU WIN!
Fans can receive six free boneless or traditional wings at any Buffalo Wild Wings restaurant location throughout the greater Vegas metro area with a $10+ qualifying pre-tax purchase of food and non-alcoholic beverages, available for two days after any 2026-27 VGK Win.

LOOKING AHEAD
The Golden Knights will battle the Anaheim Ducks on Friday, Oct. 2 at 7 p.m. at T-Mobile Arena to close out the first homestand of the season. Watch the game on Scripps Sports (The Spot-Vegas 34 in Vegas), stream on KnightTime+ or listen live on X 107.9 and 105.7 Maxima. Get your tickets for all Golden Knights home games here.