Balinskis Gets First Point of Season as Girgensons' Lightning Overcome 0-2 Deficit

In the National Hockey League (NHL), North America's top professional ice hockey league, Latvian defenseman Uvis Balinskis recorded his first point of the season overnight on Sunday with an assist. His Florida Panthers beat the Seattle Kraken 8-3 at home. Meanwhile, the Tampa Bay Lightning, for whom Latvian forward Zemgus Girgensons plays, erased a two-goal deficit and defeated the Vancouver Canucks 4-2.

Florida's win

Balinskis spent 17 minutes and 16 seconds on the ice, delivered one hit and finished with a plus-minus rating of +1. His assist came in the 12th minute of the third period, when Sam Bennett completed a hat-trick (three goals in one game) and set the final score at 8-3.

Sandis Vilmanis, who plays for the same team, did not register a point this time. The forward played 16 minutes and 35 seconds, took two shots on goal, made four hits and blocked one shot. He has one point this season, an assist against the Buffalo Sabres.

Florida's attack was especially productive: Bennett and Carter Verhaeghe each scored three goals, while Niko Mikkola and Sam Reinhart added one apiece. The hosts led 3-1 after the first period and 6-1 in the second. Brady Tkachuk had scored three goals in each of the previous two games, which made the Panthers the first team in NHL history to record a hat-trick in three consecutive games. It was Florida's third straight win.

Tampa Bay's comeback

Girgensons played 13 minutes and 21 seconds in the victory, did not score a point, took one shot on goal, made two hits and finished at +1.

The game started poorly for Tampa Bay. Linus Karlsson put the visitors ahead in the first period, and early in the second Elias Pettersson made it 2-0 on a power play. The Lightning then replied with two goals from Nikita Kucherov within five minutes, levelling the score by the second intermission. In the third period Jake Guentzel put the hosts ahead, and Pontus Holmberg made it 4-2 in the 56th minute. Tampa Bay outshot Vancouver 35-14.

The Lightning have won six of their eight games this season and remain unbeaten at home, with five wins from five. The Canucks suffered their seventh consecutive defeat.