The San Jose Sharks spent the summer swinging big. They landed Darnell Nurse from the Edmonton Oilers and gave Jacob Trouba a four-year, $33 million deal, signaling they’re serious about pushing into their contention window. The message is clear: Mike Grier’s team wants to go all-in, build around Macklin Celebrini, and spend like a club that believes its time is now.
That’s the part the Vegas Golden Knights have seen before.
For Golden Knights fans, there’s a familiar storyline here - the league’s next supposed superstar, the heavy expectations, the big-market ambition, and the pressure to turn promise into a trophy. Vegas has watched that movie before in Edmonton, and it’s running out of screen time. Now the Sharks are trying to write their own version with a new cast and a louder budget.
But the Golden Knights have had the upper hand in this matchup for a while. They swept the season series against San Jose and have won 11 straight games against their division rival. So much for the idea of this being a “heated rivalry,” eh?
If Vegas wants to keep that streak rolling in 2026-27, the formula starts with Celebrini. His 2025-26 season was outrageous: 45 goals, 70 assists, and 115 points.
That kind of production should drag a team into the thick of the race on its own. Instead, the gap behind him tells the real story.
Will Smith was next with 59 points, including 24 goals and 35 assists. That’s a massive drop-off, and it shows how heavily San Jose leans on its young centerpiece.
The Sharks’ team numbers only sharpen the concern. Their goaltending was shaky, with a 3.54 team goals-against average and a .887 team save percentage. That’s not the kind of foundation that lets a team absorb mistakes, especially when so much of the offense runs through one player.
That’s also why the additions of Trouba and Nurse matter. San Jose is trying to patch some of the scoring burden from the back end and make life easier for Celebrini. But those moves don’t erase the bigger issues.
The season opener against Vegas was the perfect snapshot. The Sharks were ahead 3-2 and on the verge of handing the Golden Knights their first regulation loss ever at SAP Center.
Then Alex Nedeljkovic gave it away with two costly mistakes. Jack Eichel scored from the blue line on one of the wildest goals you’ll ever see, and the chaos didn’t stop there.
In overtime, another Nedeljkovic misplay led to Reilly Smith’s game-winner.
That’s the blueprint for Vegas again: make Celebrini work for every inch, and don’t let the rest of San Jose beat you. The Golden Knights have the kind of two-way forwards who can do exactly that, even if the Sharks get more help this season. And if things go the way Vegas would prefer, the old “Baby Shark” tune might be playing in the background all over again.
In Other News...
Golden Knights Just Opened The Door To A Bigger Deadline Swing
The Golden Knights have already started shaping their next deadline before the season even gets there, moving Pavel Dorofeyev to the Rangers for draft picks and, more importantly, creating a little more breathing room in future salary-cap planning. For a team that has never been shy about pushing chips in when the moment calls for it, the move is less about the player they gave up than the flexibility it buys if Vegas decides it wants to strike again when the market heats up.
That kind of maneuvering keeps the focus on where the next upgrade might come from, and the early list is the usual mix of clubs that could be forced to rethink their direction if things go sideways. Detroit, Winnipeg and Columbus all stand out as potential sources if their seasons sour, which is exactly the sort of backdrop that can turn a patient front office into an aggressive one. Vegas does not need to make a splash now, but this trade suggests the door is open for something bigger when the deadline picture comes into focus. [Read more 🡒]
Golden Knights Preseason Battle Carries Real Stakes For Three Roster Fringe Players
The preseason usually gives teams a chance to sort out lines, test combinations and ease into the real work, but for Alexander Holtz, Braeden Bowman and Parker Wotherspoon, it comes with a sharper edge. Each is sitting on the roster fringe for Vegas, and each enters camp with something to prove: Holtz after underwhelming compared to previous seasons, Bowman after showing some real promise as an undrafted rookie last year, and Wotherspoon after putting up assist numbers that suggest he has to keep producing at that level to stay in the picture.
For players in that kind of spot, the margin for error can disappear quickly once exhibition games begin. A strong stretch could push one of them closer to a full-time role, while a flat showing might send a player sliding toward demotion or out of the conversation altogether. For a Golden Knights group that has plenty to settle before opening night, the battle among those three is one of the more consequential subplots to watch. [Read more 🡒]