Stone, Golden Knights roll over Flames 6–2 — Pacific Division roundup

Golden Knights surge, Flames sink to the bottom

The headline performance in the Pacific came from Vegas. The Golden Knights went into Calgary and handled the Flames 6-2, strengthening their hold on first place in the division with 14 points through 9 games (7-2-0). Sportsnet reports that Mark Stone scored three times in the third period for a natural hat trick, his second career three-goal outing, while Jack Eichel chipped in a goal and two assists in the blowout. Calgary, now last in the Pacific with just 2 points in 7 contests (1-6-0), finds itself mired in the early stages of a rebuild. Former Flame Rasmus Andersson, speaking to Sportsnet, urged patience and pointed to the longer-term plan in Calgary.

Oilers stumble vs. Mammoth as Babcock questions usage

The Edmonton Oilers remain second in the Pacific with 11 points in 7 games (5-1-1), but Thursday brought a setback. They fell 4-2 at home to the Utah Mammoth. According to Sportsnet, Clayton Keller scored twice and Logan Cooley netted the game-winner as Edmonton suffered its first regulation defeat against Utah. Earlier, Sportsnet noted that head coach Mike Babcock admitted he had leaned too heavily on his stars, saying, “I played them too much.” The Oilers were also without Jason Dickinson, who Sportsnet says was ruled out against the Mammoth after leaving the morning skate.

Kraken, Sharks and Canucks all go beyond regulation

Seattle’s trip to Tampa Bay yielded a single point in a 4-3 overtime loss. Sportsnet highlights Brandon Hagel’s two-goal outing for the Lightning and Victor Hedman’s highlight-reel OT winner as he split the Kraken defence. There was worrying news for Seattle as well: Daily Faceoff reports that Brandon Montour left the game with a lower-body injury. Even with the defeat, the Kraken sit third in the Pacific with 11 points in 8 games (5-2-1).

In San Jose, the Sharks needed a shootout but edged the Nashville Predators 3-2 to move to 4-3-0 (8 points), slotting in just behind Anaheim in the middle of the division pack. Sportsnet notes that Will Smith scored his third goal of the season and Macklin Celebrini delivered the only goal in the shootout. Nashville forced overtime on a buzzer-beater from Steven Stamkos with under a second left in regulation.

The Vancouver Canucks’ skid continued in Florida. They surrendered a two-goal lead and lost 3-2 in overtime to the Panthers, dropping to 2-6-1 with 5 points and sitting seventh in the Pacific. Daily Faceoff and La Presse both report that Brady Tkachuk scored all three Florida goals for a second straight hat trick, while Sportsnet adds that Seth Jones recorded two assists in the comeback. Sportsnet also argues the rebuilding Canucks can still take some positives from the performance, even as their losing streak hit six games. The previously reported trade sending Aatu Räty from Vancouver to Toronto has already been covered on our site.

The Anaheim Ducks (fourth, 8 points in 6 games) and Los Angeles Kings (seventh, 2 points in 5 games) were idle, but they watched the gap widen to Vegas and Edmonton as the Pacific Division standings continued to stretch out early in the season.