Morning Skate Report: December 27, 2024

The Vegas Golden Knights (23-8-3) will be looking for their second win over the San Jose Sharks this season when they head out for a road trip at SAP Center on Friday at 7:30 p.m.

TRANSFER INFORMATION
TV: Vegas 34
Streaming: KnightTime+
Radio: FOX Sports Las Vegas 98.9/1340

NOTES
With Monday’s win over the Anaheim Ducks, Bruce Cassidy became the winningest head coach in franchise history with 119 wins.

Tomas Hertl returns to San Jose for the first time since being traded to the Golden Knights on March 8, 2024.

The Golden Knights return to the ice after the holiday break. They enter Friday’s matchup with an NHL-best .721 points average.

The Golden Knights are 11-2-1 against Pacific Division teams this season. The team is also 19-3-2 against Western Conference teams this season.

Vegas enters Friday’s game against the Sharks on a four-game winning streak. The Golden Knights are 8-1-0 in December and 12-2-1 in their last 15 games. The team posted a four-game winning streak for the third time this season.

VGK MILESTONE CLOCK
Jack Eichel – Two games away from reaching 200 games as a Golden Knight
Mark Stone – Four goals away from 100 goals as a Golden Knight

CAREER MILESTONE WATCH
Tanner Pearson – Two points away from 300 career points
Victor Olofsson – Three goals away from 100 career goals
Victor Olofsson – Five assists shy of 100 assists in his career
Mark Stone – Five points away from 600 career points

VGK RATING GUIDE
Jack Eichel – 45 points (9G, 36A)
Ivan Barbashev – 30 points (15G, 15A)
Mark Stone – 28 points (7G, 21A)
Shea Theodore – 28 points (4G, 24A)
Tomas Hertl – 24 points (10G, 14A)
Pavel Dorofeyev – 18 points (12G, 6A)

LAST TIME
The Golden Knights finished the season with a 3-1 win over the Anaheim Ducks before the holiday break on Monday night at T-Mobile Arena. Tanner Pearson opened the scoring for Vegas with a shorthanded goal late in the second period. After a scoreless second period, Mason McTavish tied the game shortly after the start of the third period. Tomas Hertl and Keegan Kolesar responded with their own goals and secured Vegas a 3-1 win. Adin Hill earned his 50^Th Win as the Golden Knight by stopping 31 of 32 shots.

SEASON SERIES
The first game of the season between the Golden Knights and the Sharks ended with a 7-3 victory in favor of Vegas on October 26 at T-Mobile Arena. Pearson, Jack Eichel and Brett Howden all scored in the first period to give Vegas a 3-0 lead. Mikael Granlund scored for the Sharks, but William Karlsson scored his first goal of the season, a shorthanded goal, followed by a power-play goal from Pavel Dorofeyev to extend Vegas’ lead to 5-2 early in the third period. Mark Stone scored, becoming the sixth Vegas player to score in the game. Howden scored his second goal of the night with less than two minutes left to give the Golden Knights a 7-3 win.

OPPOSITION UPDATE
The San Jose Sharks have a record of 11-20-6 with 28 points and are in last place in the Pacific Division. The Sharks have lost their last five games, four of which were by one goal. Friday’s game is part of a back-to-back home series for San Jose. Mikael Granlund led the Sharks with 33 points (11G, 22A), followed by William Eklund with 27 points (7G, 20A) and Macklin Celebrini with 25 points (11G, 14A).

PACIFIC DIVISION STANDING
Vegas Golden Knights – 23-8-3, 49 points
Edmonton Oilers – 21-11-2, 44 points
Los Angeles Kings – 19-10-5, 43 points
Vancouver Canucks – 17-10-7, 41 points
Calgary Flames – 16-11-7, 39 points
Seattle Kraken – 15-19-2, 32 points
Anaheim Ducks – 13-16-4, 30 points
San Jose Sharks – 11/20/6, 28 points