A give-and-take opening two periods was followed by a back-and-forth final frame as the Tampa Bay Lightning got back in the win column with a 6-3 triumph over the Vegas Golden Knights on Thursday night.
Vegas outshot Tampa Bay 15-3 in the first period to claim a 2-0 lead, but the Lightning tied the game in the second period behind a pair of points from rookie Dominic James, who co-led all players with a three-point night.
Gage Goncalves made it 2-1 in the opening minute of period two, and James’ first NHL goal came on a rebound to tie the game shortly after. Tampa Bay outshot Vegas 15-4 in the middle frame.
Nikita Kucherov scored 2:48 into the final frame to make it 3-2 Tampa Bay before the Golden Knights tied the game again, but a pair of Brandon Hagel goals and Kucherov’s second score of the night secured a win for the visitors.
Goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy finished with 29 saves to help Tampa Bay improve to 7-5-2 on the year.
The Lightning continue play on Saturday with a visit from the Washington Capitals.
Scoring summary
First period
VGK 1, TBL 0
7:25 Ivan Babashev (5) -Noah Hanifin, Mitch Marner
The home team was the first team on the scoreboard on Thursday with a rebound goal.
VGK 2, TBL 0
15:53 Barbashev (6) -Marner, Jack Eichel
Ivan Barbashev’s second goal of the period came on a chance in the slot and doubled the home team’s lead.
Shots on goal: VGK 15, TBL 3
Second period
VGK 2, TBL 1
00:36 Gage Goncalves (1) – Dominic James
The Lightning had a much better start to the second period, as Gage Goncalves’ first goal of the season put the Lightning on the board with a top-shelf shot from the slot.
VGK 2, TBL 2
3:28 James (1) – Oliver Bjorkstrand, JJ Moser
The first NHL goal for rookie Dominic James tied things up for Tampa Bay. James buried a loose puck following an Oliver Bjorkstrand shot next to the Vegas net.
Shots on goal: TBL 15, VGK 4
Third period
TBL 3, VGK 2
2:48 Nikita Kucherov (6) – Bjorkstrand, Jake Guentzel
Just as a Lightning power play was ending, Nikita Kucherov sent his one-timer shot past Carl Lindbom at the right goalpost for Tampa Bay’s first lead of the night.
TBL 3, VGK 3
3:37 Marner (4) – Eichel, Barbashev
Vegas tied the game less than a minute after the Lightning had taken the lead, their goal coming on an unfortunate bounce off a Lightning defender’s stick.
TBL 4, VGK 3
4:12 Brandon Hagel (5) – James
James’ third point of the night set up Brandon Hagel to restore the visitors’ lead. Hagel won a puck battle in front of the Vegas net, beating the defenseman to the puck and slipping a centering pass into the net.
TBL 5, VGK 3
14:13 Kucherov (7) – Victor Hedman, Hagel – PP
Kucherov’s second goal of the night came on the power play for a late cushion.
TBL 6, VGK 3
19:13 Hagel (6) – Kucherov – EN
Hagel’s game-closing goal went into the empty net to seal the win.
Total shots: VGK 32, TBL 27