Sept. 22: NHL Preseason Roundup

The Florida Panthers played their first game since winning the Stanley Cup, a 3-2 victory against the Nashville Predators in a split-squad game at Amerant Bank Arena on Sunday.

The Panthers defeated the Edmonton Oilers 2-1 in Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final for their first championship since joining the NHL for the 1993-94 season.

It was the preseason debut for each team.

Sam Bennett, Hunter St. Martin and Rasmus Asplund scored, and Spencer Knight stopped all 19 shots he faced for Florida.

Cole Smith and Joakim Kemell scored, and Matt Murray and Ethan Haider combined to make 20 saves for Nashville.

The Panthers took a 2-0 lead with second-period goals from Bennett and St. Martin 1:31 apart.

Asplund put them ahead 3-0 at 11:23.

Smith cut it to 3-1 with a tip-in past Cooper Black (five saves) at 6:35 of the third period. Kemell made it 3-2 at 13:44.

Steven Stamkos will make his Predators debut in the second game at 6 p.m. ET. The 34-year-old forward signed a four-year, $32 million contract ($8 million average annual value) with Nashville on July 1 after playing his first 16 NHL seasons with the Tampa Bay Lightning.

Flyers 6, Capitals 2: Matvei Michkov had two assists in his NHL debut for the Philadelphia Flyers against the Washington Capitals at Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C.

The 19-year-old forward and No. 7 pick of the 2023 NHL Draft signed his entry-level contract July 1 after his contract with SKA St. Petersburg in the Kontinental Hockey League was terminated.

Joel Farabee had a goal and three assists, Morgan Frost had two goals and an assist, and Bobby Brink scored twice for the Flyers. Jett Luchanko had two assists and Ivan Fedotovand Carson Bjarnason combined for 19 saves.

Andrew Cristall and Ivan Miroshnichenko scored for the Capitals. Hunter Shepard and Clay Stevenson totaled 22 saves.

It was the preseason debut for each team.

Brink's goal 4:00 into the first period gave Philadelphia a 1-0 lead. Michkov had the primary assist when Frost scored to make it 2-0 at 16:44.

Cristall cut it to 2-1 at 17:20.

Farabee put Philadelphia ahead 3-1 at 10:22 of the second period. Miroshnichenko made it 3-2 at 18:35.

Brink scored again to put the Flyers ahead 4-2 at 5:37 of the third period. Luchanko, Philadelphia's first-round pick (No. 13) in the 2024 NHL Draft, assisted on each of Brink's goals.

Olle Lycksell pushed it to 5-2 at 6:51.

Frost scored his second goal at 12:00 for the 6-2 final.