Girgensons Delivers Seven Hits as Rangers, With Smits, Lose 7-1
In the NHL, Zemgus Girgensons helped the Tampa Bay Lightning beat the Seattle Kraken 4-3 in overtime, while Rangers defenseman Alberts Smits's team lost 7-1 to the New Jersey Devils.
In regular-season games of the National Hockey League (NHL), the top professional ice hockey league in North America, Latvian players Zemgus Girgensons and Alberts Smits saw contrasting results on 16 October. Girgensons' Tampa Bay Lightning beat the Seattle Kraken 4-3 in overtime at home, while Smits' New York Rangers lost 7-1 away to the New Jersey Devils.
Girgensons and Tampa Bay
Latvian forward Girgensons played 20 shifts and spent 15 minutes 11 seconds on the ice, including two minutes 15 seconds short-handed and one second on the power play. He delivered seven hits, sharing the team lead with Conor Geekie, took one shot on goal and won five of eight faceoffs (62.5%). He recorded no points and no penalty minutes.
Tampa Bay captain Victor Hedman scored the winner in the third minute of overtime, with Pontus Holmberg credited with the assist. Brandon Hagel scored twice and Ilya Mikheyev added one. After two periods the Lightning led 2-1, but Matthew Beniers tied the game four minutes 19 seconds before the end of regulation. Seattle's other goals came from Jared McCann and Ryan Winterton. Tampa Bay has won all four of its home games this season; it last began a season that well at home in 2020/2021, when it won six in a row.
Heavy defeat for Smits' Rangers
Latvian defenseman Smits played 17 minutes 1 second over 22 shifts, including one minute 27 seconds short-handed and 14 seconds on the power play. He took two shots on goal, gave the puck away once, had no points or penalty minutes, and finished with a plus-minus of −1.
The Devils scored four goals in a little over five minutes. Evan Rodrigues opened the scoring 29.6 seconds before the first intermission, and early in the second period Luke Hughes and Nico Hischier scored, followed by Arseny Gritsyuk's goal to make it 4-0. Rangers goaltender Dylan Garand stopped nine of 13 shots before being replaced by Spencer Martin, who allowed three more goals. Hughes scored two goals in a game for the first time in his NHL career. The Rangers' only goal came on the power play in the third period from Pavel Dorofeyev. New Jersey won its second straight game, while New York suffered its third loss in nine games this season.
