TROUBA, PANARIN SHINE IN RANGERS DEBUTS

In a back-and-forth affair which featured four game-tying goals – including two of them that saw a team even the score within 30 seconds of the previous marker – the Rangers outlasted the Jets in the Broadway debut of offseason acquisitions Jacob Trouba (1-2—3) and Artemi Panarin (1-1—2).



* Facing off against his former team for the first time, Trouba’s three points marked the most by a defenseman in his first game with the Rangers. The 25-year-old blueliner fell one point shy of the most by any Rangers player in his debut with the club, held by Doug Bentley (1-3—4 vs. BOS on Jan. 20, 1954) and Derick Brassard (1-3—4 vs. PIT on April 3, 2013).

* Kaapo Kakko (15:31 TOI, 3 SOG) made his much-anticipated League debut after being selected by the Rangers with the second-overall pick in the 2019 NHL Draft. Kakko, born Feb. 13, 2001, became the first player born in 2001 to skate in an NHL game.

* Making his 14th consecutive season-opening start with the Rangers, Henrik Lundqvist turned aside 43 shots en route to earning career win No. 450. His 43 saves matched the franchise record for most in a season opener since shots on goal were officially tracked, a mark set by Gump Worsley on Oct. 7, 1955 (7-4 W at CHI).

KUCHEROV HELPS LIGHTNING EXTEND WIN STREAK IN SEASON OPENERS
After recording the highest point total by any player since Mario Lemieux and Jaromir Jagr (1995-96) with 41-87—128 last season, reigning Art Ross Trophy winner Nikita Kucherov picked up where he left off by collecting 1-1—2 to help the Lightning extend their win streak in season openers to six games – the longest active run in the NHL.



* Tampa Bay improved to 18-7-2 in 27 all-time season-opening games overall. The Lightning’s point percentage of .703 in season openers is the best such total among current NHL franchises – slightly higher than the Golden Knights (.667 P%; 2-1-0, 4 points) and Avalanche (.662 P%; 23-10-7, 53 points), who also earned wins to open 2019-20.

RANTANEN, DONSKOI LIFT AVALANCHE IN PLAYOFF REMATCH WITH FLAMES
Mikko Rantanen and offseason acquisition Joonas Donskoi each scored twice to lift the Avalanche past the Flames, their fourth consecutive win in season-opening games. Colorado has earned five straight victories against Calgary dating to Game 2 of the 2019 First Round, outscoring the Flames 22-10 in those contests.

* Thursday marked the second instance in franchise history where two players each recorded a multi-goal game in a season opener. The first occurred on Oct. 9, 1980, when Quebec’s Michel Goulet and Jacques Richard both scored twice in a 5-5 tie with Calgary.

* Jared Bednar improved to 4-0-0 in season-opening games since making his NHL head coaching debut with the Avalanche in 2016-17. Only Tom Renney (8-0-0), Toe Blake (7-0-0), Tommy Ivan (7-0-0), Lester Patrick (7-0-0) and Michel Bergeron (6-0-0) have recorded a longer such win streak from the start of their NHL head coaching career.

OTHER SEASON-OPENING QUICK HITS

More highlights from the second day of the 2019-20 NHL season:

* The Hurricanes brought back the ‘Storm Surge’after their season-opening shootout win. Dougie Hamilton (0-2—2) started the ceremony at center ice – which replicated the first-ever surge that occurred after their third game of the 2018-19 NHL season.

* Offseason acquisition Matt Duchene collected three assists in his Predators debut to help Nashville overcome a third-period deficit en route to victory. He was one point shy of the most by a player in their first game with the team, a mark set by Steve Sullivan on Feb. 18, 2004 (3-1—4 vs. SJS).

* Ducks defenseman Cam Fowler scored his 14th career game-winning goal in the regular season to power Anaheim over Arizona and pass Scott Niedermayer (13) for the most by a blueliner in franchise history.

QUICK CLICKS

* Sharks defenseman Erik Karlsson announces birth of daughter
* Alex DeBrincat signs three-year contract extension with Blackhawks
* Global Series blog: James van Riemsdyk

* Former President George W. Bush drops puck at Stars opener

* Country music star Keith Urban gives guest analysis

SNEAK PEEK AT FRIDAY’S ACTION

BLACKHAWKS, FLYERS SET FOR GLOBAL SERIES CLASH IN PRAGUE
The Blackhawks and Flyers will both open their 2019-20 seasons on Friday at the O2 Arena in Prague, Czech Republic in the first of three contests slated for the 2019 NHL Global Series (also TBL/BUF on Nov. 8 and 9 at Ericsson Globe in Stockholm, Sweden).

* This will mark the 32nd time that the NHL has staged a regular-season game at a venue outside North America and the fifth one to be held in Prague.

* Chicago is 1-0-1 in two all-time regular-season games overseas, with each contest taking place against Florida in Helsinki, Finland to open the 2009-10 season (4-3 SO L on Oct. 2, 2009 and 4-0 W on Oct. 3, 2009). Philadelphia, meanwhile, will be contesting its first-ever regular-season game outside North America.

* The Blackhawks won the Stanley Cup the first time they started their season overseas, defeating the Flyers in six games in the 2010 Final. Only six players who skated in the last game of the 2010 Stanley Cup Final are currently on the same team: Chicago’s Patrick Kane, Duncan Keith, Brent Seabrook and Jonathan Toews, as well as Philadelphia’s Claude Giroux and James van Riemsdyk.

* Friday will mark the first instance of two former Stanley Cup Final opponents meeting in a regular-season game outside North America. The Penguins and Predators played two games in Saitama, Japan from Oct. 6-7, 2000, almost 17 years before meeting in the 2017 Stanley Cup Final (a 4-2 series win for PIT); the Kings and Rangers also squared off in Stockholm, Sweden on Oct. 7, 2011, nearly three years before facing each other in the 2014 Final (a 4-1 series win for LAK).

* Flyers forward Jakub Voracek (Kladno) will look to join Radim Vrbata (Mlada Boleslav; 2-0—2) and David Krejci (Sternberk; 0-3—3) as the third Czech Republic native to register a point during a regular-season game in his home country.

Thanks to the NHL PR department for the information above.