On Thursday, the Vegas Golden Knights (7-3-3) played host to the Tampa Bay Lightning (7-5-2). They started strong, scoring the first two goals, but suffered an epic collapse in the second period. The game went off the rails in the third period, and the Golden Knights fell 6-3.
Unlike in their first meeting, the Golden Knights had their legs right from puck drop. They recorded the first nine shots on goal; it took the Lightning 15:35 to record their first. The Golden Knights completely controlled the first period, outshooting the Lightning 15-3.
The Golden Knights broke the ice at 7:25 in the first. Andrei Vasilevskiy couldn’t glove down Noah Hanifin’s blast from the point, and Ivan Barbashev backhanded in the rebound.Â
Ivan Barbashev looks so good to start the year. He’s always where he needs to be. Vasilevskiy kicks out a blast from Noah Hanifin, and Barbashev backhands in the rebound.
1-0, Golden Knights
— Hannah Kirkell (@h_kirk6) November 7, 2025
Eight minutes later, the Golden Knights doubled their lead. Mitch Marner and Jack Eichel played catch, racing up ice on the rush and gaining the zone. Marner drifted below the goal line and threaded a pass to Ivan Barbashev between the hashmarks, and Andrei Vasilevskiy couldn’t make the save.
Have yourself a game, Ivan Barbashev! Beautiful feed from Mitch Marner, and Barbashev rips it past Vasilevskiy from the top of the hash marks.
2-0, Golden Knights
— Hannah Kirkell (@h_kirk6) November 7, 2025
In the second period, however, the Lightning completely flipped the script. They outworked, outskated, and outshot the Golden Knights. The Lightning finished the period with a 15-4 edge in shots.Â
The Lightning got on the board just 36 seconds into the second period. Noah Hanifin went back to retrieve the puck and turned it over to Dominic James behind the net. James found Gage Goncalves in the slot, and Goncalves fired it home.
Less than three minutes later, the Lightning found the equalizer. JJ Moser found Dominic James, who sent Oliver Bjorkstrand in on a partial breakaway. Carl Lindbom made the stop in close but couldn’t control the rebound and got caught out of position. Gage Goncalves crashed the net, and James scored his first NHL goal.
In the third period, the game went completely off the rails. Momentum swung back and forth like a pendulum; ultimately, the Lightning seized hold of it.
The Lightning took their first lead of the night 2:48 into the third. Oliver Bjorkstrand threaded a cross-ice pass to Nikita Kucherov, and Kucherov scored from the Draisaitl spot.
The Golden Knights answered back and tied the game 49 seconds later. Mitch Marner floated a seeing-eye shot from the point, and the puck changed directions off Victor Hedman in the high slot.
Oh, hey! A response goal! Mitch Marner flings a seeing-eye shot from the point. It changed directions— I’m not sure if it was off Victor Hedman or Ivan Barbashev for the hat trick.
3-3
— Hannah Kirkell (@h_kirk6) November 7, 2025
The Lightning retook the lead just 35 seconds later. Brandon Hagel won a battle in front of the net and flung a shot over Carl Lindbom’s glove.
That was the end for the Golden Knights. They outshot the Lightning 13-8, but couldn’t get another past Vasilevskiy.Â
The Lightning scored an insurance goal on the power play with just over five minutes left in the third. Victor Hedman set up Nikita Kucherov for a one-timer, and Kucherov ripped a laser beam past Carl Lindbom far-side.
The Golden Knights pulled Lindbom for the extra attacker, but much like on their power plays, they failed to generate any good looks. Nikita Kucherov set up Brandon Hagel for the empty-netter and the Tampa Bay touchdown, and that was that.
Three stars of the game: Nikita Kucherov, Mitch Marner, Dominic James
7 Golden Knights Observations
1. Less than a minute after Hagel’s go-ahead goal, the Golden Knights had the perfect opportunity to regain control of the game. Andrei Vasilevskiy took a high-sticking double minor, and the Golden Knights headed to a four-minute power play.
They recorded two shots on goal.
2. Since losing Mark Stone, the Golden Knights’ power play is 31st in the league with an 8.7% success rate.
3. Ivan Barbashev looks fantastic. He always seems to be exactly where he needs to be, and right now, just about everything he touches is going into the net. He played like this to start last season, as well, but was never the same after his injury.Â
4. At this point, you’ve got to feel for Brandon Saad– he just can’t seem to score. According to Moneypuck.com, he’s tied for the 14th-worst GSAx in the league at -3.
5. Something’s gotta give in regards to Jeremy Lauzon’s tendency to take penalties. Lauzon is tied for fourth in the league with seven minor penalties taken. His tripping penalty tonight perfectly encapsulated his struggles this season– not only did he take a penalty, he went out of position to do so, springing the Lightning on a 2-on-1.
6. After a two-assist night, Jack Eichel is tied for first in the league in points with 21. However, in the third period, he looked rough with the puck. He mishandled it, turned it over, and sprung Lightning players on breakaways.Â
7. Brayden McNabb spoke for a total of 56 seconds after the game. If that doesn’t tell you all you need to know…