FSM Recap: Vegas Golden Knights vs Pittsburgh Penguins: NHL Game 10

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Vegas Golden Knights (8-2-0) | Pittsburgh Penguins (3-5-1)

Stone sparks a three-goal first period as Vegas gets contributions from all over the lineup

LAS VEGAS: The Vegas Golden Knights delivered another emphatic performance Saturday night, rolling past the Pittsburgh Penguins 6-2 at T-Mobile Arena on Oct. 17 behind a three-point opening period from captain Mark Stone. Vegas scored three times in the first period, answered each Pittsburgh push, and secured its third consecutive win to improve to 8-2-0 on the NHL season. Goaltender Adin Hill made 22 saves, while Stone finished with a goal and two assists.

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Video Courtesy: NHL

Game Summary: Vegas Golden Knights vs Pittsburgh Penguins

TEAM	1	2	3	Final
PIT	0	1	1	2
VGK	3	2	1	6

A Blistering Start

Vegas needed just 1:06 to strike. Defenseman Rasmus Andersson snapped a shot home from the right circle after a feed from Jack Eichel and Stone, giving the Golden Knights an early lead. At 4:02, Noah Hanifin doubled the advantage, finishing a rush after Eichel found him in space. Eichel and Stone were credited with assists on that goal as well, putting Pittsburgh under pressure before the game had settled.

The home side made it 3-0 late in the opening period when Stone redirected a shot from rookie Trevor Connelly on the power play at 17:46. The goal was confirmed after video review and capped a dominant first period in which Vegas converted its pressure into a commanding three-goal cushion.

Pittsburgh Answers, Vegas Responds

The Penguins briefly found life early in the second period. Captain Sidney Crosby redirected a shot from Tommy Novak on the power play at 5:54 to put Pittsburgh on the board. But Vegas answered just 71 seconds later, as Connelly finished a rush with a shot to the top corner and restored the three-goal margin.

The Golden Knights kept pressing. Defenseman Shea Theodore made it 5-1 at 11:17, one-timing a pass from Brayden McNabb past goaltender Sergei Murashov. Vegas had goals from three different defensemen by that point, a sign of how effectively its blue line joined the attack.

Composure Seals The Win

Pittsburgh’s Evgeni Malkin cut the deficit to 5-2 early in the third, tapping in a loose puck near the crease at 4:43. Vegas did not allow the goal to become a turning point. The Golden Knights managed the remaining minutes and closed the scoring at 17:47, when Brett Howden was awarded an empty-net goal after being taken down on a breakaway.

Stone led the way with three points, while Eichel and Mitch Marner each recorded two assists. Connelly contributed a goal and an assist, continuing a productive start to his rookie season. Hill’s 22 saves helped Vegas maintain control even as Pittsburgh scored once on the power play and once at even strength.

What It Means

The victory moved Vegas to 8-2-0 and extended its winning streak to three games, with the team scoring six goals for the second straight contest. The Golden Knights have now produced 17 goals across their last three games and are getting offense from both their forwards and defensemen. Pittsburgh, meanwhile, fell to 3-5-1 and has lost three straight, leaving it with a lot to address after letting in three goals in the opening period.

Vegas will look to carry that momentum into its next home game against the Tampa Bay Lightning on Tuesday. The performance against Pittsburgh offered a clear blueprint: attack early, involve the defense, and answer quickly whenever an opponent threatens to gain momentum.

Post-Game

Vegas head coach Ryan Craig pointed to how the Golden Knights’ rush attack put Pittsburgh on its heels: “We have a net presence or middle lane drive on those, so that helps. It forces teams to make decisions, forces teams to sort out that rush or return to D zone, and when we have our guys on time with that, we have guys that can make plays too,” Craig said.

Jack Eichel, who set up two of the three goals from the blue line, credited the defensemen for jumping into the play: “The D are getting involved. Obviously, we had a couple of goals from our back end tonight, which is great to see. We’re doing a fine job, which is great,” Eichel said. (Quotes via NHL.com.)

Follow every game on our Vegas Golden Knights hub, and catch up on Mark Stone’s third-period hat trick against the Calgary Flames and the Golden Knights’ bounce-back win over the Nashville Predators.

TOP PERFORMERS

Vegas Golden Knights	G / A / PTS	Pittsburgh Penguins	G / A / PTS
Mark Stone	1 / 2 / 3	Tommy Novak	0 / 2 / 2
Trevor Connelly	1 / 1 / 2	Sidney Crosby	1 / 0 / 1
Jack Eichel	0 / 2 / 2	Evgeni Malkin	1 / 0 / 1
Mitch Marner	0 / 2 / 2	Ville Koivunen	0 / 1 / 1
Adin Hill (G)	22 saves, .917	Sergei Murashov (G)	14 saves, .737

TEAM STATS

Category	Vegas Golden Knights	Pittsburgh Penguins
Shots on Goal	19	24
Power Play	1-1	1-1
Faceoffs Won	24 (55.8%)	19 (44.2%)
Hits	27	10
Blocked Shots	7	10
Giveaways	22	19
Takeaways	6	7
Penalty Minutes	9	9

Goals: Andersson, Hanifin, Stone (PP), Connelly, Theodore, Howden | Attendance: 17,437 at T-Mobile Arena

Next up: The Golden Knights host the Tampa Bay Lightning on Tuesday, Oct. 20, at T-Mobile Arena. Puck drop is 7:30 p.m. PT on ESPN.

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– Jordan Vega – Franchise Sports Media

Follow Jordan on Instagram: @jordantvegas

Photography by TQ (@tqthetrojan) for Franchise Sports Media

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Jordan Vega

Jordan Vega is a Mexican American and Native American sports broadcaster from Coachella, California. He has played football since age seven and played college football at Orange Coast College. After high school, Jordan served in the U.S. Navy, where he discovered judo and earned two national gold medals while training in Brazilian jiu-jitsu. Now studying Sports Broadcasting at UNLV and competing in wrestling, Jordan is passionate about telling authentic sports stories and creating greater representation in sports media. His goal is to become a household name and inspire the next generation.