Parker Wotherspoon didn’t need much time to realize a change was coming. A missed call from his general manager, then a text telling him to call back right away, set off the kind of moment a player usually recognizes before anyone says a word.
“I look over at my girlfriend and I go, ‘Uh-oh,’” Wotherspoon said.
The feeling flipped quickly. The 29-year-old defenseman found out he had been traded to the Vegas Golden Knights, and the move comes after the best NHL season of his career.
Wotherspoon played in 80 games for the Pittsburgh Penguins, a major step forward for a player who had spent a long stretch working to lock down a steady NHL role. He said the confidence was always there, even when the opportunities weren’t.
“You have to believe in yourself, and I think I had that confidence all the way through,” Wotherspoon said. “I knew I had the game and the defensive ability to play in the NHL. It was just needing someone to give you a shot.”
He credited his time with Boston for helping him show what he could do before Pittsburgh gave him a bigger chance.
“When you’re given that role, you gotta take it,” he said. “All in all, I just kind of want to be resilient in my career, and I’ve always just wanted to be an NHLer.”
Wotherspoon also got a front-row seat to life beside Erik Karlsson in Pittsburgh, and he said the veteran defenseman was a valuable guide in all kinds of ways.
“He helped me all the way through,” Wotherspoon said. “Every time we’d get off the ice, we’d be talking back and forth.”
Now in Vegas, Wotherspoon says the focus stays on his defense, but he plans to carry over one specific lesson from Karlsson: move the puck fast and get it to the forwards.
The adjustment has already started to feel smoother thanks to the welcome he’s received. Wotherspoon said Mark Stone was one of the first Golden Knights to reach out, and he estimates 10 to 15 teammates contacted him after the trade.
“That usually doesn’t happen,” Wotherspoon said. “It’s pretty cool.”
Vegas is also a place Wotherspoon has wanted to call home for a while.
“I’ve always wanted to live in Vegas,” he said, pointing to the combination of the Strip and suburban life. “You get a bit of both if you need it.”
In Other News...
Mark Stone Just Made His Commitment To Vegas Crystal Clear
Mark Stones latest move left little doubt about where he wants to finish this chapter of his career. The Golden Knights captain signed a two-year contract extension worth a $9 million average annual value, and the deal includes a full no-move clause, a clear sign of how firmly he is tied to Vegas as he continues as one of the franchises most important players.
Stone has been a central figure in the Golden Knights rise over eight seasons, and his value has gone well beyond the scoresheet. In a recent interview, he talked about his commitment to the team and to the Las Vegas community, reinforcing the sense that his focus remains on building with the organization rather than looking elsewhere. For a club that still leans on its leaders, that kind of certainty matters. [Read more 🡒]
Golden Knights Open Camp With Real Forward Line Drama
Training camp opens Thursday at City National Arena, and the Golden Knights are bringing a crowded field to the first skates, with 66 players in the mix as roles and roster spots start to take shape. The familiar names are there, too, from Jack Eichel and Mitch Marner to Mark Stone, giving the club plenty of high-end talent even before the lines are settled.
The intrigue is less about whether Vegas has skill and more about where it all fits. Early speculation points to Trevor Connelly as a possible third-line piece and Victor Olofsson on the fourth line, the kind of alignment that says plenty about how much competition there is at forward and how little is guaranteed before camp even really gets rolling. [Read more 🡒]
Golden Knights Enter Camp With Two Huge Questions To Solve
After another run that ended with the Golden Knights coming up just short of the Stanley Cup, camp is set to open with a familiar mix of confidence and unfinished business. Vegas has spent the offseason preparing for the 2026-27 push, but the roster now has a different look after Pavel Dorofeyev was traded to the New York Rangers, leaving a clear hole in the scoring and power-play production the Knights leaned on last season.
The other major decision sits in net, where the club has to sort out whether Carter Hart or Adin Hill will emerge as the starter. For a team that expects to contend again, those are not small questions to answer in September, especially with the standard in Vegas still set by a group that reached the final stage of the spring and wants to get back there. [Read more 🡒]