The Colorado Avalanche and the Vegas Golden Knights play during the first period of an outdoor game Saturday at Lake Tahoe in Stateline, Nevada. Rich Pedronecelli/Associated Press
STATELINE, Nev. — The setting was spectacular but the ice conditions were far from it, leading to an extended delay between the first and second period of the outdoor game between the Vegas Golden Knights and Colorado Avalanche at Lake Tahoe.
The NHL decided to halt the game for more than eight hours on Saturday after bright sun led to poor ice conditions that had players and officials repeatedly falling because of holes on the ice.
“We concluded after consulting with our ice makers and both teams that we didn’t think it was safe or appropriate to continue this game at this time,” Commissioner Gary Bettman told broadcaster NBC.
The game was halted after the first period at 3:55 p.m. and Bettman said the plan is to play the final two periods starting at midnight.
The NHL announced that Sunday’s game between Boston and Philadelphia will be moved back by more than five hours to avoid the bright sunshine that is causing issues for the first game this weekend.
The game at Edgewood Tahoe Resort will now start at 7:30 p.m. It had originally been scheduled for a noon local start and then was moved back to 11 a.m. earlier in the week because of the forecast.
The game also was moved from NBC to NBCSN, with the New Jersey Devils-Washington Capitals game previously scheduled for 7 p.m. now being changed to 2 p.m. and being broadcast on NBC.
Bettman said some players wanted to keep playing while others didn’t, but the final decision was made in consultation with the union because of safety.
“It’s probably a good decision they moved it to tonight,” Avalanche captain Gabriel Landeskog said on NBC. “We’ll be ready to go.”
Crews were working on the ice just before the opening faceoff and issues kept cropping up throughout the period.
The ice took away from the spectacular setting for the game, which is being played on a makeshift rink on the 18th fairway of a golf course on the shore of Lake Tahoe, with snow-covered mountains in the background.
It snowed overnight and into the morning before the sun came out and caused problems the NHL couldn’t deal with.
“We’ve done over 30 (outdoor) games and we never had a problem quite like this,” Bettman said. “We played in rain, we played in snow. Sunshine has always been our enemy. We’ve postponed and delayed games because of sun glare.”
The Avalanche led the game 1-0 on a goal by Samuel Girard.
Both teams were unable to practice on the specially built outdoor rink before Saturday’s Vegas-Colorado game because of the ice conditions. They were forced to go to a local indoor rink instead.
“In this game, you have to learn how to adapt,” Flyers Coach Alain Vigneault said.
SABRES 3, DEVILS 2: Sam Reinhart scored two goals and Buffalo snapped a four-game losing streak with a much-needed win in Newark, New Jersey.
Defensemen Colin Miller also scored and Linus Ullmark made 25 saves for the Sabres, who had not won since beating the Devils in a shootout on Jan. 30. Jack Eichel added two assists for Buffalo, which returned to play this week after missing two weeks because of the pandemic.
Kyle Palmieri and P.K. Subban scored in the third period for the Devils, who welcomed center Nico Hischier for his first game this season by naming him captain. Mackenzie Blackwood (4-1-1) had 26 saves in losing for the the first time in regulation this season.
The Sabres opened a 3-0 lead after two periods and the faceoff circle was the key. The goals came after faceoff wins in the Devils’ end.
Miller beat a screened Blackwood after Eric Staal won a faceoff. Reinhart got his fourth and fifth goals of the season in the second period after faceoff wins by Eichel.
Palmieri closed the gap to 3-1 in the opening minute of the third period. Subban scored a power-play goal with 3:16 left in regulation and the Devils’ net empty.
Miller blocked a last-second shot from between the circles by Pavel Zacha to preserve the win.
Sabres defenseman Jake McCabe left the ice in the third period with an apparent knee injury.
RANGERS 4, CAPITALS 1: Alexis Lafrenière scored his second NHL goal, Artemi Panarin had two assists and New York made the best of a new-look lineup, winning in for its second consecutive victory.
Lafrenière, the top pick in the 2020 draft, cashed in on his promotion to New York’s top line by scoring for the first time in eight games. Panarin set up Lafrenière on the doorstep late in the second period, and his shot provided the rebound for Chris Kreider’s power-play goal in the first.
With a goal and an assist, Ryan Strome made history as the first player to record 100 points apiece with the Rangers and Islanders. Igor Shesterkin made 27 saves, Mika Zibanejad sealed it with an empty-netter with 2:12 left and New York strung together back-to-back wins for just the second time this season.
The Capitals struggled to match the Rangers’ energy early in a game moved up to an afternoon start, falling behind 3-0 before Dmitry Orlov scored his first goal of the season with 38.2 seconds left in the second period. Vitek Vanecek allowed three goals on 24 shots in his 13th consecutive start, and Washington’s winning streak was snapped at two.
PENGUINS 3, ISLANDERS 2: Sidney Crosby had two assists in his 1,000th NHL game and Pittsburgh won at home.
MAPLE LEAFS 5, CANADIENS 3: Auston Matthews scored twice to increase his NHL-leading goals total to 18 and added two assists in Toronto’s victory over visiting Montreal.
HURRICANES 4, LIGHTNING 0: Rookie Alex Nedeljkovic made 24 saves for first NHL shutout and Carolina beat visiting Tampa Bay.
SHARKS 5, BLUES 4: Logan Couture scored his second goal of the game midway through the third period, and San Jose held on for a win at St. Louis.
KINGS 4, COYOTES 2: Alex Iafallo scored two goals, Cal Peterson stopped 22 shots and visiting Los Angeles got its fourth straight victory.
RED WINGS 2, PANTHERS 1: Mathias Brome scored his first NHL goal late in the second period and Detroit won at home.
PREDATORS 4, BLUE JACKETS 2: Calle Jarnkrok scored in the first and third periods, Pekka Rinne made 21 saves and visiting Nashville split a two-game series.
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