Golden Knights raise Stanley Cup banner, beat Kraken in opener

LAS VEGAS (AP) — Jonathan Marchessault scored, Adin Hill made 23 saves and the Stanley Cup champion Vegas Golden Knights beat the Seattle Kraken 4-1 on Tuesday night after a banner-raising ceremony.

Conn Smythe winner Marchessault scored in the first game of the season for the fourth straight year and the fifth time in seven seasons with Vegas.

Chandler Stephenson, Ivan Barbashev and Jack Eichel also scored for the Golden Knights.

Jared McCann scored Seattle’s lone goal. Philipp Grubauer made 24 saves.

Vegas got the scoring going early in the first period when Mark Stone, Brett Howden and Stephenson played tick-tack-toe in the offensive zone. As they crossed the blue line, Stone went cross-ice with a pass to Howden, who sent the puck to the crease where Stephenson was there for the finish.

The Golden Knights made it 2-0 when Seattle’s Brandon Tanev went to clear the puck past the goal, but Marchessault nicked it off course and past Grubauer.

Barbashev connected on a breakaway snapper 1:20 into the second period to make it 3-0. Seattle answered midway through the period when McCann’s wrist shot from the slot sailed past Hill.

The Kraken had an ample opportunity midway into the third, when Howden was called for a match penalty when he delivered a shot to Tanev’s head. But just as he did in standing tall during the Golden Knights’ Stanley Cup run, Hill was outstanding in making six saves during the penalty kill.

Eichel scored into an empty net with a little more than a minute remaining.

INJURY UPDATE

Golden Knights forward William Carrier left during the second period with an upper-body injury and did not return. … Seattle forward Pierre-Edouard Bellemare also left the bench in the second period after blocking a shot with his left hand. He returned for the third period.

UP NEXT

Kraken: At Nashville on Thursday night.

Golden Knights: At San Jose on Thursday night.

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