Friday, October 2, 2026
Friday, October 2 NHL Recap
The NHL brought a packed night featuring two shutouts, a wild overtime finish, and Anaheim holding off Vegas.
Friday night in the NHL saw five regular season games on the slate, highlighted by two road shutouts and a see-saw overtime battle in Winnipeg.
In Detroit, the New York Rangers blanked the Red Wings 2-0 at Little Caesars Arena. Dylan Garand earned a perfect 22-save shutout, while Sean Durzi scored on the power play and Eeli Tolvanen added a late insurance goal. Garand, Durzi, and Tolvanen were named the three stars of the contest.
The St. Louis Blues were also stingy, shutting out the Dallas Stars 4-0 at American Airlines Center. Joel Hofer stopped all 25 shots he faced for the shutout. Mason McTavish opened the scoring early, and Dalibor Dvorsky, Jimmy Snuggerud, and Pius Suter added goals to seal the win. Hofer, McTavish, and Dvorsky were recognized as the game's top performers.
Winnipeg and Boston played a tight contest at Canada Life Centre, eventually decided in overtime when JJ Peterka scored at 3:21 to give the Bruins a 4-3 road victory. Kyle Connor (1 goal, 1 assist) starred for the Jets, while Jeremy Swayman made 30 saves for Boston. Stuart Skinner also turned in a strong effort for Winnipeg.
Over in Raleigh, Washington came out firing with three first-period goals en route to a 5-2 win over Carolina. Alex Tuch netted a pair for the Capitals, and Logan Thompson turned aside 31 of 33 shots. Jakob Chychrun and Cole Hutson also contributed with goals for the Caps.
The Anaheim Ducks built a 4-0 lead and hung on to edge the Vegas Golden Knights 4-3 at T-Mobile Arena. Leo Carlsson scored and picked up an assist for the Ducks, and Lukas Dostal was sturdy in net with 27 saves, including withstanding a furious Vegas push in the third period.
- Sean Durzi scored a power play goal from Gabe Perreault and Will Cuylle (1st, 05:12).
- Eeli Tolvanen added insurance late in the third from Tye Kartye and Adam Fox (3rd, 18:44).
- Dylan Garand made 22 saves for the shutout.
- John Gibson stopped 19 of 20 for Detroit.
- Three stars: 1. Dylan Garand (NYR), 2. Sean Durzi (NYR), 3. Eeli Tolvanen (NYR).
- Alex Tuch scored twice for the Capitals.
- Cole Hutson, Jakob Chychrun (power play), and Ryan Leonard also tallied for Washington.
- Sebastian Aho scored on the power play and Logan Stankoven added a third-period goal for Carolina.
- Logan Thompson made 31 saves for Washington.
- Brandon Bussi stopped 22 for Carolina.
- Three stars: 1. Alex Tuch (WSH), 2. Logan Thompson (WSH), 3. Jakob Chychrun (WSH).
- Dylan DeMelo opened the scoring for Winnipeg.
- Hampus Lindholm and James Hagens replied for Boston in the first.
- Kyle Connor tied it in the second on the power play, and Mario Ferraro put the Jets in front before the intermission.
- Elias Lindholm forced overtime with a third-period goal for Boston.
- JJ Peterka won it for the Bruins in overtime from David Pastrnak and Nikita Zadorov.
- Jeremy Swayman made 30 saves for Boston; Stuart Skinner stopped 26 for Winnipeg.
- Three stars: 1. Kyle Connor (WPG), 2. Stuart Skinner (WPG), 3. Jeremy Swayman (BOS).
- Mason McTavish scored early for St. Louis.
- Dalibor Dvorsky, Jimmy Snuggerud, and Pius Suter added goals in the second and third periods.
- Joel Hofer stopped all 25 shots for the shutout.
- Jake Oettinger made 20 saves for Dallas.
- Three stars: 1. Joel Hofer (STL), 2. Mason McTavish (STL), 3. Dalibor Dvorsky (STL).
- Beckett Sennecke, Alex Killorn, Jeff Malott, and Leo Carlsson scored four straight for Anaheim.
- Vegas responded with goals from Shea Theodore, Tomas Hertl (power play), and Braeden Bowman.
- Lukas Dostal stopped 27 of 30 shots for Anaheim.
- Carter Hart made 16 saves for Vegas.
- Three stars: 1. Leo Carlsson (ANA), 2. Shea Theodore (VGK), 3. Lukas Dostal (ANA).
Sources: NHL scores