Starting Five - Golden Knights Take Down Sharks In Season Opener

The start of a new season brings excitement and passion to every NHL team, but for the Vegas Golden Knights on Oct. 2, the day brought thrill and fanfare like only Vegas can. When the Golden Knights picked up their first two points of the season against the rival San Jose Sharks, fans were treated to a day of celebration of the game and the team as a whole.

In this "Starting Five" series, we will take a look back at each win and the fond memories on and off the ice that made each victory so special for the Golden Knights and their fans.

Cody Glass's First NHL Goal
Any NHL player would tell you that they still remember the thrill of scoring their first goal at the highest level of hockey in the world. When Cody Glass scored for the first time as a Golden Knight, the story was just too perfect for the 20-year-old forward. In his first NHL game, the very first draft pick in franchise history centered Max Pacioretty and Mark Stone. Stone scored the game's first goal and, with Vegas leading 2-1 in the second period, Glass inked his name on the scoresheet for the first time.

Golden Knights Unveil New Pregame Open
Anyone who has seen hockey at The Fortress knows that the game is more than just a three-period event. The show that takes place just before the players take the ice for puck drop builds the excitement in the crowd to its boiling point and the home opener for 2019-20 was no different. Things took on a Western theme as the Golden Knight used some help from his friends to reclaim the Golden Sword.

The home crowd was jumping long after the stellar pregame show as the passion carried through the end of the game.

Players & Celebrities Take Gold Carpet
For the third year in a row, the Golden Knights players walked the Gold Carpet as they arrived at T-Mobile Arena for the game. Players showed off their fashion as they signed autographs, took selfies and posed for the "360 cam" to capture the moment in unique style.

Puck Drop from Space
What started as a lofty idea in a VGK business meeting became a reality as members of the Golden Knights organization worked to get the ceremonial faceoff puck off the ground and into the atmosphere. The puck climbed 94,656 feet in the air attached to a weather balloon and made its descent back to Earth before being delivered to T-Mobile Arena to start the season.

Smith Strikes Twice
Reilly Smith, who represented the Golden Knights in the ceremonial opening faceoff, also represented the team well on the scoresheet with a pair of beautiful goals. His first, the eventual game-winning goal, came less than two minutes after Stone's opening goal.

William Karlsson picked up an assist on each of Smith's goals as the pair combined for a picture-perfect shorthanded goal to make it 4-1.