The Golden Knights open the 2026-27 season with a three-game stretch that should tell a lot about how the first week is going to feel in Las Vegas. It starts the way it usually does: Opening Knight at T-Mobile Arena on Tuesday against the Chicago Blackhawks, then a home date with the Anaheim Ducks on Friday before the trip to British Columbia to face the Vancouver Canucks on Sunday.
The early edge at home is real for Vegas. The Golden Knights are 7-1-1 all-time in home openers, and Connor Bedard will miss the season opener, which only adds to the sense that Tuesday should tilt toward the Knights. With the crowd locked in and the building set for another Opening Knight matinee, Vegas has every reason to expect a strong start.
Friday brings what looks like the toughest test of the week, even if it comes by default. Anaheim was a playoff team last season, and the Ducks still have pieces that demand attention.
Jackson LaCombe, Leo Carlsson, and Cutter Gauthier give them enough firepower to be a problem. At the same time, the Ducks are dealing with major departures after Jacob Trouba went to the San Jose Sharks and Chris Kreider was cut as he went to the Montreal Canadiens.
That leaves Vegas with a real chance to open its season push the right way against a team trying to stay in the mix.
Sunday’s matchup in Vancouver looks, on paper, like the one the Golden Knights should control most comfortably. The Canucks are projected to finish at the bottom of the Pacific Division, and the source of their hope is mostly that the game is on the road, which at least gives them something to lean on. But the gap between the teams appears wide enough that this should be another game in Vegas’s favor as the calendar turns through the first week.
If the Knights handle business, they’ll move through this opening run with the kind of start that settles everybody down fast. If not, it could get uncomfortable in a hurry.
In Other News...
Golden Knights Face Huge Breakout Pressure From Two Key Names
The Golden Knights are already looking down the road to 2026-27, and the early projections point to two names carrying a lot of the intrigue. Trevor Connelly is being floated as a possible scoring breakout and even a Calder Trophy candidate, a sign of how much optimism surrounds his ceiling if everything comes together. For a team that has built its identity on veteran presence and polished depth, that kind of youthful offensive push would add another layer to the roster picture.
Carter Hart is part of the same conversation, with expectations that he could put himself in position to become the third Vegas goaltender to reach 30 wins in a season. It is the kind of benchmark that says as much about team structure as it does about the goalie, and it would give the Knights another important anchor if the projection holds. For now, though, both ideas remain in the category of what-ifs, and the real interest is how much of that upside Vegas can actually turn into results when the season arrives. [Read more 🡒]
Golden Knights Open With Early Pressure On A Reshaped Bottom Six
The Golden Knights are opening their 10th NHL season with a fresh look in the bottom six, and there is real intrigue in how the roster shakeup will play out under head coach Ryan Craig. Vegas has leaned into its new pieces, including first-round pick Trevor Connelly and Braeden Bowman, both of whom have earned spots on the roster as the team settles on its line combinations for the season opener against Chicago.
For a club that has spent years building around depth and versatility, the way those lower-line groups settle in could go a long way toward shaping the tone of the night. The early pressure will not just be on the usual top-end names, but on the newcomers who now have a chance to show they belong from the start, with the opening game offering the first real test of how reshaped this forward group can be. [Read more 🡒]
Golden Knights Just Changed Course Behind The Bench Again
The Golden Knights are once again making a change behind the bench, turning from John Tortorella to Ryan Craig after the 2025-26 season. Craig comes in from the organizations AHL affiliate in Henderson, where he had been coaching the next wave of talent, and the move points toward a different feel for a roster that has long been built to win now.
What makes this shift notable is the direction it suggests. Craig is expected to lean more toward collaboration and to give younger players a clearer path into the lineup, a contrast that could reshape how Vegas develops and deploys its depth. Analyst Steve Peters has already weighed in on the approach and what it might mean for the Golden Knights, but the real test will be whether the new bench voice can balance that developmental mandate with the expectations that come with a contender. [Read more 🡒]