Goaltender Ilya Samsonov made 25 saves to win his NHL debut as the Washington Capitals spoiled the New York Islanders’ season opener with a 2-1 victory Friday night in Uniondale, N.Y.
Oct 4, 2019; Uniondale, NY, USA; Washington Capitals goaltender Ilya Samsonov (30) makes a save against the New York Islanders during the second period at Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Dennis Schneidler-USA TODAY Sports
T.J. Oshie and Jakub Vrana scored for the Capitals, who won their second straight road game.
Devon Toews tallied the lone goal for the Islanders. Veteran goaltender Semyon Varlamov, making his New York debut, stopped 26 of 28 shots.
The only goal allowed by Samsonov, a 22-year-old Russian who was Washington’s first-round pick in the 2015 NHL draft, was a fluke. With New York trailing 1-0 in the first period, Toews’ shot ricocheted off the skates of three Capitals players before deflecting over Samsonov’s left shoulder.
Jets 5, Devils 4 (SO)
Blake Wheeler scored the winner in the fourth round of a shootout as Winnipeg rallied from a four-goal deficit to stun New Jersey in the Devils’ season opener in Newark, N.J.
Neal Pionk and Mathieu Perreault each added a goal and an assist, and Laurent Brossoit made 35 saves as Winnipeg recorded a stunning victory. The Jets, coming off a 6-4 season-opening loss to the New York Rangers on Thursday, scored three times in the third period to force overtime and ultimately the shootout.
Devils forward Jack Hughes, the 18-year-old No. 1 overall draft pick of 2019, played 15:12 and missed a shootout attempt in his NHL debut. New Jersey’s Nikita Gusev and Winnipeg’s Kyle Connor scored in the first round of the shootout, and neither team converted again until Wheeler’s winner.
Flyers 4, Blackhawks 3
Travis Konecny scored twice and Carter Hart made 28 saves as Philadelphia skated past Chicago in Prague, Czech Republic.
Oskar Lindblom had a power-play goal and Michael Raffl also tallied for the Flyers, who presented new coach Alain Vigneault with a victory in their season opener.
Patrick Kane had a goal and two assists, Alexander Nylander and Alex DeBrincat also tallied, and Corey Crawford turned aside 34 shots for the Blackhawks.
Maple Leafs 4, Blue Jackets 1
Mitch Marner had two goals and an assist, Morgan Rielly added three assists, and visiting Toronto defeated Columbus.
Cody Ceci and Auston Matthews also scored for the Maple Leafs, who have won their first two games of the season. John Tavares added two assists.
Cam Atkinson scored for the Blue Jackets in their season opener, tying the NHL record by scoring in a sixth straight opening-day game. He now shares the mark with Mud Bruneteau of the Detroit Red Wings (1940-45) and Yvan Cournoyer of the Montreal Canadiens (1973-78).
—Field Level Media
