Since their inception, the Vegas Golden Knights have consistently been among the NHL’s elite. Not only have they qualified for the postseason in six of their seven seasons, but Vegas has already played in the Stanley Cup Finals twice — losing to the Washington Capitals in their inaugural 2017-18 season before besting Florida Panthers in 2022-23.
Caps goalie Logan Thompson made 24 saves against his former team to earn his first win of the season in a 4-2 victory. Thompson, who was traded to Washington during the 2024 NHL Draft in Vegas, earned the victory over Adin Hill, who he backed up while amassing a 56-32-11 record during his four seasons in the Golden Knights organization.
Forward Jakub Vrana, who helped the Capitals win the Stanley Cup in 2018, opened the scoring on his first shot in his first game back with the franchise. Tom Wilson, Aliaksei Protas and Jakob Chychrun all scored during the second period. Alex Ovechkin added two assists on the night, became just the sixth players in NHL history — along with Wayne Gretzky, Gordie Howe, Jaromir Jagr, Marcel Dionne and Phil Esposito — to register 700 goals and 700 assists.
Vrana, the former first-round pick who was traded to Detroit in 2021, might be the feel-good story of the early season after playing well enough during a training camp tryout to once again claim a roster spot in Washington.
