Lightning push point streak to seven, defeat Golden Knights

LAS VEGAS --Andrei Vasilevskiy made 29 saves and the Tampa Bay Lightning pushed their point streak to seven games with a 3-2 win against the Vegas Golden Knights at T-Mobile Arena on Friday.

Tyler Johnson, Brayden Point and J.T. Miller scored for Tampa Bay (7-1-1), which won its third straight game and improved to 6-0-1 in its past seven. The nine-game start equals the best start to a season in Lightning history (2003-04; 2017-18).
"Give Vegas credit, they made a big push, but our goalie was there when we needed him and it's a big win in a tough spot on the road," Lightning coach Jon Cooper said. "He was nominated for the Vezina (Trophy) last year, and that wasn't by fluke. When we have our breakdowns, he's been a rock for us."
WATCH: [All Lightning vs. Golden Knights highlights]
Shea Theodore and William Karlsson scored for the Golden Knights (4-5-1), who were 3-0-1 in their past four games. Marc-Andre Fleury made 20 saves.
Tampa Bay defeated Vegas for the first time after the Golden Knights swept the season series in 2017-18, their inaugural season.
"That's a really good hockey team," Lightning defenseman Dan Girardi said. "They're Stanley Cup finalists for a reason, so we'll take those two points. It's a tough building to play in, it's exciting and fun to play in, but we're going to take these two points and move on to Arizona."
Johnson scored off a rebound at 3:05 of the first period to give Tampa Bay a 1-0 lead.
Theodore scored at 5:31 of the first to tie the game at 1-1. It was the first goal by a Golden Knights defenseman this season.

Tampa Bay took the lead at 16:38 of the first when Point redirected a pass from Steven Stamkos in front of the net to make it 2-1.
Miller scored a power-play goal at 4:47 of the second period for a 3-1 lead, his second goal in four games. Vegas challenged that the play was offside, but the call stood after video review. The Golden Knights were assessed a minor penalty for delay of game.

"I don't think [the challenge] affected the [outcome of the game]," Golden Knights coach Gerard Gallant said. "From what I saw, what I looked at, it was a tough call. They weren't sure themselves. It was worth the gamble at that time."
After being outshot 12-6 in the first period, the Lightning outshot the Golden Knights 16-6 in the second. Vegas finished the game with a 31-23 advantage.
Karlsson scored a power-play goal at 1:47 of the third period to make it 3-2. It was the third power-play goal of the season for the Golden Knights on 32 attempts.

"We learned from this game that we need to be there for a full 60 minutes," Karlsson said. "You can't just show up in the third."
Vegas forward Max Pacioretty left at 4:44 of the first period after he was hit in the face by Tampa Bay defenseman Braydon Coburn.
"We'll know more later," Gallant said on Pacioretty's status. "You've got to rotate lines. You hate to lose a player like Pacioretty."
Lightning defenseman Victor Hedman left the game at 3:08 of the second period after a hit from Golden Knights forward Ryan Reaves.
Cooper said he didn't believe Hedman's injury is long-term but said there is a good chance he won't play at the Arizona Coyotes on Saturday.

They said it

"When the guys are humming around, they're some pretty skilled players. When we're skating and executing that's the kind of stuff you see. When our guys are rolling, they're pretty good."-- Lightning coach Jon Cooper

"We were still in it. It's 3-1 and to just keep battling. One goal could change the whole momentum. I think we got a lot of it from that power play. The rest of the period, we played really well."-- Golden Knights forward William Karlsson

Need to know

Lightning forward Nikita Kucherov extended his point streak to seven games (three goals, six assists) with a secondary assist on Point's goal. … Golden Knights defenseman Deryk Engelland played 17:25 and had one shot on goal in his return to the lineup. He missed the past three games with an upper-body injury. … Vegas forward Ryan Carpenter returned to the lineup after missing one game with an illness, replacing Tomas Hyka. … Oscar Lindberg replaced Tomas Nosek on the third line for Vegas. Nosek was a healthy scratch for the first time this season.

What's next

Lightning: At the Arizona Coyotes on Saturday (9 p.m. ET; FS-A, SUN, NHL.TV)
Golden Knights:Host the Ottawa Senators on Sunday (8 p.m. ET; ATTSN-RM, SN1, TVAS, NHL.TV)