The Vegas Golden Knights began the 2026-27 season with a bang, earning a 5-2 victory over the Chicago Blackhawks at T-Mobile Arena on Tuesday night. The club improved to 7-0-1 in its last eight season openers, the longest active Opening Night point streak in the NHL.
As in several preseason contests, Vegas came out firing on all cylinders, shutting down the Blackhawks and limiting them to few scoring opportunities and shots on goal. With five goals on the scoreboard, it was a historic night for several players in the Golden Knights lineup as they skated away with an impressive 5-2 win over the Chicago Blackhawks on Opening Knight. Here are the top two statistical storylines to come out of Tuesday’s game.
Connelly becomes the second-youngest Golden Knights player to score
At just 20 years and 213 days old, Connelly became the second-youngest player in franchise history to score his first goal, with Cody Glass holding the record at 20 years and 184 days. It was a big moment for the former 19th-overall pick, who made the Vegas Opening Night roster for the first time. Considering the success of the Golden Knights franchise during their first 10 years, the organization hasn’t had many impactful first-round picks in their lineup. Moreover, despite three Stanley Cup Final appearances, they haven’t had many high draft picks who later became significant contributors.
Ahead of the 2026-27 season, Connelly was the Golden Knights’ top prospect, earning the chance to showcase his skills in the NHL. After 49 points in 46 games with the Henderson Silver Knights last season, it’s no surprise that he scored his first goal in his first NHL contest. In the offseason, Vegas traded away Pavel Dorofeyev and needs players to step up and replace his 30-plus goals, and Connelly could be one of them.
Eichel becomes fifth player from 2015 NHL Draft to reach 700 points
With an assist in the first period, a goal in the second period, and another helper in the third, Eichel collected his 699th, 700th, and 701st points, becoming the fifth member of his 2015 Draft class to reach the plateau. As the second overall pick, the native of North Chelmsford, MA, joins Sebastian Aho (711 points), Mikko Rantanen (782 points), teammate Mitch Marner (821 points), and Connor McDavid (1,220 points) as the five members of the 2015 Draft class to reach 700.
Moreover, Eichel is now at 346 points with the Golden Knights and is just 29 points behind Shea Theodore for fourth place all-time in franchise history. Right now, he’s the only player in the top five in team scoring who hasn’t even played 400 games yet, with Tuesday’s game being only his 316th. He’s produced at a 1.09 points-per-game pace with the Golden Knights, slightly higher than his career average of 1.01. No one has ever scored 100 points in a season for Vegas, and with three points in the opener, Eichel only needs 97 more in the next 83 games to become the first.
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