It’s plausible that we spend too much of our attention on VGK superstar Jack Eichel. Our answer is, why shouldn’t we? His unsigned extension is one of the bigger storylines around the league and he happened to be named one of the top players in the entire NHL. Even surpassing one of the game’s all-time greats.
Sportsnet’s 2025-26 Top Ten Players
Connor McDavid
Nathan MacKinnon
Leon Draisaitl
Cale Makar
Nikita Kucherov
Quinn Hughes
Auston Matthews
Kirill Kaprizov
Jack Eichel
Aleksander Barkov
Last season Eichel couldn’t crack the Top 20 as then 37-year-old Sidney Crosby remained among Sportsnet’s ten best. Surprisingly, Eichel was ranked 26th overall last season which was unfairly low. Now, Sportsnet super boosted the Golden Knights top center 17 spots higher. It appears Eichel’s high 2025-26 rankings were also an omission for placing him so low last year.
(Credit: Sportsnet)
Sportsnet mentions Eichel’s top ten point total as well as his fifth-place finish for the Hart Trophy (5th Place) and Selke Award (5th) last season. Whereas in the past, the star center wouldn’t have received any praise for his two-way play. Now, there’s no doubting his high-end skill on both sides of the ice. Since his move to Vegas, many consider him a complete player.
The other day we lightly played off of NHL.com’s crafted All-Massachusetts vs. All-Michigan starting lineups. With very little analysis, Vegas’ Jack Eichel and Noah Hanifin led their home state past Michigan and Minnesota in hypothetical matchups. Well, we figured we’d try the same scenario and compare the commonwealth’s starting lineup to All-Canadian province lineups. This mock bracket didn’t go as well for MA. Nothing Eichel or Hanifin can do when several of the world’s best players grew up in the same Canadian regions.
Manitoba Starting Lineup: Mark Stone, Max Domi, Seth Jarvis, Travis Sanheim, Zach Whitecloud, James Reimer
You might as well call Manitoba the Nevada of the North. The Golden Knights have had no shortage of players from MB, including the franchise’s first overall pick and first-ever captain. Like Massachusetts’ starting lineup, Manitoba consists of two veterans from Vegas. Mark Stone leads his Keystone Province teammates offensively, while VGK teammate Zach Whitecloud covers the backend. Bottom line, Manitoba lacks scoring. Their three forwards combined for 58 goals in 2023-24, Eichel, Kreider and Boldy combined for 41 more. That differential is too wide to close. MA wins with ease.
Saskatchewan: Jordan Eberle, Brayden Schenn, Chandler Stephenson, Brayden McNabb, Luke Schenn, Connor Ingram
Here’s another province with several Golden Knights ties. Former VGK Cup winner Chandler Stephenson compliments Saskatchewan’s offense, while original misfit Brayden McNabb holds down the blue line. Overall, the Breadbasket of Canada has produced many impactful NHLers over the years. Heck, Gordie Howe was born in Floral. Saskatchewan’s starting lineup has enough offense, solid defense and a goaltender coming into his own. This is a close contest, but it comes down to scoring and I can’t imagine the Canadian province keeping up.
Quebec: Jonathan Marchessault, David Perron, Nic Roy, Kris Letang, Thomas Chabot, Marc-Andre Fleury
Okay, it’s starting to heat up. Sure, maybe the Bay state knocks off MB and SK but what about Eastern Canada’s provincial territories? Of course, we had to loosen the rules to fit as many active or former VGK players as possible. However, only carrying one 40-goal scorer hurts the Quebec lineup so Marc-Andre Fleury will need to turn the clocks back to 2021. It’s another tight battle but Massachusetts survives.
Alberta: Taylor Hall, William Nylander, Brayden Point, Cale Makar, Josh Morrissey, Stuart Skinner
The run for Eichel and Hanifin was impressive, but it ends with Alberta. Frankly, their streak would have ended against any of the remaining provinces. AB’s three forwards combined for 87 goals, oh, and Taylor Hall only had two goals in ten games last season. Alberta also dresses Cale Makar and Josh Morrisey on their blueline. Good luck with that.
The Golden Knights continued their four-game road trip with a matchup against the Penguins in Pittsburgh. Vegas got off to a good start, scoring two goals in the opening period. Jack Eichel opened the scoring with his 12th goal of the season and Reilly Smith doubled Vegas’ lead on the power play. The Golden Knights held a 2-0 road lead heading into the 1st intermission.
Pittsburgh worked their way back in the middle frame, outshooting and outscoring Vegas. The Penguins evened the score 2-2 after 40 minutes played.
Special teams would come into to play in the final period for both teams. Shea Theodore regained the lead for Vegas with their second PP goal is the game. However, the Penguins would score on the man-advantage as well and eventually took the lead for good minutes later.
The Golden Knights record drops to (17-7-1) losing 4-3 in Pittsburgh. Vegas will make a short visit in Detroit for a matchup with the Red Wings on Saturday. Puck drop from Hockeytown is scheduled for 4P PT. (Recap by Jason)
Since it’s the first day of December, what’s everyone’s favorite Christmas movie before this game gets started.
The one downfall of being an NHL player is that it’s not a lifelong job. The average American retires around 65, but for the average pro hockey player it’s 33. While it’s a highly desirable job, earning high salaries, and entertaining millions, there’s still plenty of life after hockey.
TSN’s Bob McKenzie was asked which current player he thought could become a good NHL GM, and his answer was not surprising.
Sidney Crosby is a hockey junkie. He loves the game. He loves to talk about the game, he follows things closely. He has a great awareness of what’s going on. I don’t know if he’ll go into management but it won’t surprise me. If he did go in, he would be all in. He’s got a real passion for the game and that reflects in knowledge and a thirst for knowledge about all things hockey.-Bob McKenzie, TSN
So it got us thinking, which current/former Golden Knight would make a good NHL general manager?
Jason’s candidates: Max Pacioretty, Paul Stastny, Shea Theodore
Ken’s candidates: David Perron, Nate Schmidt, Pierre-Edouard Bellemare
Max Pacioretty
There are many elements that go into being a successful general manager, the biggest one is accepting the harsh reality of the business side of hockey. The Islanders Lou Lamoriello is a great example of being a stone-cold executive, even Vegas’ George McPhee has an icy side. Maybe it’s education, or it comes with experience. Pacioretty felt the chill up in Montreal where he was constantly made the scapegoat. From the fans, media, to team executives, #67 had a lot on his plate. However, he still managed to score 226 goals for the Canadiens. Pacioretty accepted his high-profile role as an American captain in Montreal, and professionally handled his daily responsibilities, no matter how combative they were. In the end, he was traded by the organization he gave it all for, and it didn’t phase him. By then, he had already been schooled about the dirty business.
After one year at his local high school, Pacioretty moved on to a hockey prep school, then to the USHL, and lastly the University of Michigan before becoming an NHL player. Since the age of 15, the Connecticut native was heavily recruited and scouted, so he’s well aware of that process.
As captain, Pacioretty needed to work the room and find balance with all of his teammates. Even loud, overbearing teammates like PK Subban. Being captain allowed him insight on how the team was built. What the front office was doing right and what went wrong. With several failed seasons in Montreal, I’m sure the 31-year-old veteran took note of the poor decisions made by the organization.
His experience early on with the recruitment stage, witnessing of building up and tearing down rosters, adding in his tough skin and Pacioretty has the resume to become a future general manager. (written by Jason)
David Perron
Man, I miss David Perron. Perron is one of the most intriguing players both on and off the ice.
His hockey mind is always on full display when he’s playing as he just seems to have a knack for finding holes in the offensive zone where he can hold onto the puck for a little longer than anyone else who has ever worn a VGK jersey. He sees the game at a different speed than most and I’d have to think that would translate well into scouting as well as team construction.
Off the ice is where he really made me believe he has what it takes to be a GM though. He’s one of the few players in Golden Knights history who really cared about stats and even advanced stats. He’d talk about Corsi, zone starts, through-percentage, and many other pieces of data that proved he’s a true hockey junkie.
The intelligence he displayed in breaking down complex game situations as well as his understanding of the salary cap and the business end of hockey has me believing he would be not only the most likely to become a GM, but also the best future GM of any current or former Golden Knight. (written by Ken)
The House Always Wins. (Photo Credit: SinBin.vegas Photographer Brandon Andreasen)
If one game could sum up the Golden Knights season, last night was it. Considered the ultimate redemption game for Vegas, they beat the two-time defending Stanley Cup champs, and did it with a goal from a guy who has been a healthy scratch in each of the last five games and 12 of the past 13. Not only did the team win for their star goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury but they continue to handle the NHL’s best. After the 2–1 Golden Knights win, Fleury’s old mates commented on an emotional night.
When you see him in there it’s a little different, but once you get into play, you’re playing. Yeah, it’s the first time we played against each other, it’s to be expected to feel different. -Sidney Crosby, Penguins Captain
Maybe that’s a reason why #87 didn’t have one shot on goal. Alright, that’s a stretch but it was a difficult night for the two-time Conn Smythe winner.
I think they skate well. Every line plays the same and they keep it pretty simple. They didn’t beat themselves or make mistakes that could hurt them. When they did they didn’t break down and got some saves. Both goalies were good, but it’s just one of those games. Then they found a way to get that last one in the third. -Crosby
The win didn’t seem to upset Crosby nearly as much as it did Mike Sullivan.
It was a hard-fought game. It was another one of those games that could’ve went either way. There were chances on both sides and I thought the goaltending at both ends of the rink was good. It seems like those are the type of games that we’re in night in and night out and we haven’t found ways to win those, and that’s what we have to do. -Mike Sullivan, Penguins Head Coach
As Sullivan mentioned, the goaltending was good on both ends of the rink. For sixty minutes, Fleury was the better goaltender. His new teammates aggressively pressured his former backup Matt Murray.
They are just absolutely a dog and a bone on that puck. They just work so hard, and I think that’s where they know it caught us by surprise on a couple. Especially on the forecheck where like I said, caught by surprise, quick turn over, bang bang to the net. That’s what they are good at we knew that going into it, but they are definitely a hard working team and a fast team. Good in transition. You know, I don’t think they do anything special but they work extremely hard and I think that’s why they have such success. -Matt Murray, Penguins Goaltender
Quick, hard-working, strong on the forecheck, and good in transition. Basically, the Webster’s dictionary definition of an NHL playoff team.
There was also something about a dog and a bone, but we’ll leave that one alone for now.
