Stamkos Scores Winner as Nashville Beats Tampa Bay 5-4

The 2025-26 NHL season continues with a slate of high-scoring contests across North America. Nashville Predators defeated the Tampa Bay Lightning 5-4 in a shootout on Saturday afternoon at Bridgestone Arena.

Steven Stamkos, the former Tampa Bay captain, secured the victory by scoring the only goal in the fourth round of the shootout. He beat Lightning goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy under the right arm with a backhander. Nashville goalie Justus Annunen stopped all four Lightning shooters in the one-on-one session. This marked the Predators first win in six overtime contests this season. Stamkos had earlier tied the game 4-4 with a power-play goal at 7:27 of the third period.

Reid Schaefer scored his first goal of the season for Nashville, while Adam Edstrom and Jayden Struble also added goals. Nikita Kucherov recorded three assists for Tampa Bay, a day after he asked the team to trade him. Vasilevskiy made 29 saves for the Lightning.

Boston Bruins defeated the Chicago Blackhawks 5-4 in overtime. Elias Lindholm scored the winner at 2:32 of overtime, assisted by Charlie McAvoy. Michael DiPietro stopped 37 shots for Boston, including Anton Frondell’s hat trick bid late in regulation. David Pastrnak passed Patrice Bergeron for third on the franchise’s all-time goals list with his 428th career goal.

St. Louis Blues rallied to beat the Detroit Red Wings 5-4. Aleksanteri Kaskimaki scored his first career goal with 6:45 remaining to cap the comeback. Joel Hofer made 24 saves in the opener of a four-game road trip. The Dallas Stars beat the Columbus Blue Jackets 3-1, with Jake Oettinger making 24 saves. Dallas ended a five-game winning streak with two losses before this victory.

Ottawa Senators crushed the San Jose Sharks 5-1. Dylan Cozens and Tim Stutzle each recorded a goal and an assist. Ottawa scored three goals in the second period. Samuel Ersson made 22 saves. The Edmonton Oilers shut out the New York Islanders 4-0. Tristan Jarry recorded his second consecutive shutout, making 18 saves. Connor McDavid extended his NHL-record season-opening assist streak to 14 games.

Buffalo Sabres beat the Los Angeles Kings 3-2 behind a pair from Tage Thompson. The Kings played without Adrian Kempe, who is day-to-day with an undisclosed injury. Toronto Maple Leafs defeated the Vancouver Canucks 4-2 to snap a two-game skid. William Nylander and Teddy Blueger each had a goal and an assist. Montreal Canadiens beat the Pittsburgh Penguins 5-4. Sidney Crosby recorded his 1,112th career assist, moving past Ray Bourque for the most assists by a player with one franchise. Colorado Avalanche defeated the Calgary Flames 5-2. Artturi Lehkonen scored two goals, and Cale Makar had four assists.