Jack Eichel and the defending Stanley Cup champion Golden Knights got exactly what they anticipated, and withstood that early hard push in Game 2 by the desperate Stars.

The Knights didn’t settle for a split while starting the NHL Western Conference first-round series on the road.

Eichel assisted on the tying goal by Jonathan Marchessault late in the first period before adding an empty-netter late, Noah Hanifin scored the tiebreaker with unassisted goal late in the second and the Knights won 3-1 on Wednesday night in Dallas for a 2-0 series lead.

The Kings edged the host Oilers 5-4 on Wednesday night in Game 2 of the West series, which is tied 1-1. ... The Bruins beat the Maple Leafs 4-2 on Wednesday to take a 2-1 lead in the Eastern Conference series.

Colleges: Florida General Ashley Moody is suing the Atlantic Coast Conference in an attempt to receive the media rights contracts with Florida State. The suit filed Thursday is part of an ongoing dispute as FSU seeks to leave the ACC.

NFL: Cardell Hayes, who fatally shot retired Saints star Will Smith during a confrontation following a car crash in 2016, received a 25-year prison sentence. It was the second time Hayes, 36, had faced sentencing in Smith’s death. He was convicted of manslaughter in December 2016 and sentenced to 25 years. But the jury vote had been 10-2 and the conviction was later tossed after the U.S. Supreme Court outlawed such nonunanimous verdicts.

Soccer: Welsh club Wrexham, co-owned by American actors Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney and the subject of a popular docuseries on FX, will play three exhibitions this summer in North America. The recently-promotoed club will play Premier League teams Bournemouth and Chelsea in California and the Vancouver White Caps on MLS in July.