The Vegas Golden Knights are down to 28 players as preseason keeps rolling, and the latest round of cuts brought one notable name off the board.
The group still in camp includes the expected core: Jack Eichel, Mark Stone, Mitch Marner, Tomas Hertl, William Karlsson, Shea Theodore, Noah Hanifin, Brayden McNabb, Brett Howden, Ivan Barbashev, Victor Olofsson and others. The list also features some less familiar names, including Antti Tuomisto, as the Golden Knights continue sorting out who will be in the mix for an Opening Knight roster spot.
Here’s the full group remaining:
Ivan Barbashev
Braeden Bowman
Trevor Connelly
Nic Dowd
Jack Eichel
Marc Gatcomb
Tomas Hertl
Alexander Holtz
Brett Howden
William Karlsson
Tanner Laczynski
Raphael Lavoie
Mitch Marner
Victor Olofsson
Jonas Rondbjerg
Mark Stone
Rasmus Andersson
Dylan Coghlan
Noah Hanifin
Ville Heinola
Jeremy Lauzon
Brayden McNabb
Juho Piiparinen
Shea Theodore
Antti Tuomisto
Parker Wotherspoon
Carter Hart
Adin Hill
Anyone not on that list is either hurt, headed to Henderson for training camp, or going back to their own team.
The cut that stands out most is Carl Lindbom, who has been sent to the Henderson Silver Knights’ training camp. On the surface, it’s easy to see why: the goaltending picture is crowded, and Lindbom had a steeper climb than most. But his assignment still raises eyebrows.
Lindbom’s numbers last season were strong. He put up a 2.16 goals-against average, a .926 save percentage and three shutouts, a clear jump from his 2024-25 line of a 2.65 GAA and a .912 save percentage.
His HockeyAllsvenskan work was even more eye-catching. Across his time with Djurgårdens IF and Vasterviks IK, he posted a 1.92 GAA, a .927 save percentage and seven shutouts. Those are the kind of numbers that explain why he’s viewed as a serious goaltending prospect.
He also got a taste of the NHL last season, appearing in eight games for Vegas and finishing with a 3.00 GAA and a .873 save percentage. Those aren’t the numbers that jump off the page, but the Golden Knights gave him a rookie reprieve.
Even so, the path forward still calls for more reps. A couple more preseason games would help him keep building confidence and get more comfortable against NHL-level competition before he’s asked to take on a bigger role.
And in this camp, Lindbom was buried behind Carter Hart and Adin Hill in a crowded goaltending room. That made his odds of cracking the main roster slim, even with Trevor Connelly moving up the ladder. Still, there’s a case to be made that a few more chances on the preseason stage would have done him good.
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Golden Knights Camp Is Creating One Big Power Play Concern
The Golden Knights are still only in the early stages of a shortened preseason camp, but Ryan Craig and Kelly McCrimmon have already had plenty to weigh as they sort through the roster. The Howden-Karlsson-Marner line is expected to keep giving the team a dependable boost, and Connelly looks like a leading option for a third-line role, which helps settle some of the forward picture.
The bigger question is how the top power play is going to settle after a notable reshuffle. Shea Theodore has moved up into the unit, and Mitch Marner has taken Pavel Dorofeyevs spot, a change that could alter the groups rhythm just as camp is trying to build momentum. For a team that has leaned on special teams in key moments, the way that unit comes together may end up drawing as much attention as any line battle. [Read more 🡒]
Golden Knights Camp Battle Just Got More Interesting After San Jose Win
The Golden Knights picked up a 2-1 preseason win over the Sharks in a shootout, and a few of the newer faces gave the staff something to chew on afterward. Carter Hart turned aside 28 shots and finished with a .966 save percentage, while defenseman Juho Piiparinen added his own case for more attention with a key defensive stop in a game that stayed tight throughout.
For a roster still being sorted out in camp, nights like this matter less for the final score than for the impressions they leave behind. Vegas still has more tune-up work ahead with games against the Utah Mammoth and another meeting with San Jose, and those next chances will offer a better read on who keeps pushing into the conversation as the preseason rolls on. [Read more 🡒]
Golden Knights Are Sending A Clear Message About Trevor Connelly
Trevor Connelly has already made the early part of camp interesting for the Golden Knights, because the top prospect did more than simply stick around through the first round of roster cuts. He is expected to get into an upcoming game, and the way Vegas has handled him suggests this is about more than a token look.
Connelly has also been placed on the second power play unit with veteran players, a sign the organization wants to keep challenging him while also building him toward a larger role. After a strong season with the Henderson Silver Knights, he remains one of the higher-upside names in the system, and Vegas is making it clear it sees him as a player worth developing into a real contributor. [Read more 🡒]