Golden Knights enter 2026-27 still leading the Pacific pack

Fresh off a run to the 2026 Stanley Cup Final that saw them knock off Utah, Anaheim and Colorado before falling to the Carolina Hurricanes in six games, the Vegas Golden Knights are still viewed as the team to beat in the Pacific Division. In a new season preview, Daily Faceoff projects Vegas to remain near the top of the Western Conference in 2026-27 despite a significant amount of roster and coaching turnover.

Star-studded core remains, Dorofeyev moves on

Mitch Marner’s first full year in Nevada was a major part of Vegas’ deep playoff push. Acquired from the Toronto Maple Leafs in the 2025 off-season, the winger delivered 10 goals and 29 points in 22 post-season games and has seven seasons left on a contract that carries a US$12-million cap hit. Down the middle, the Knights still boast one of the deepest groups in the Pacific with Jack Eichel, William Karlsson and Tomas Hertl anchoring the top three lines.

Captain Mark Stone, who recently signed an extension through 2029, remains the emotional and defensive engine of the team when healthy. At 34, he has missed close to 150 games over the last five full seasons, and Daily Faceoff points to his availability as a pivotal factor now that long-term injured reserve cap manoeuvring has been tightened. Eichel is coming off back-to-back 90-point campaigns, while Hertl is pencilled in for around 60 points if he maintains his playoff form.

The most notable loss up front is Pavel Dorofeyev, a back-to-back 35-goal scorer who joined the New York Rangers on a big-money deal reported at US$11 million annually through 2033. Popular winger Keegan Kolesar was dealt to the Detroit Red Wings on 1 July, and veterans such as Colton Sissons, Cole Smith, Reilly Smith, Brandon Saad, Ben Hutton and goaltender Akira Schmid have also departed. As a result, Vegas will lean more on Alex Holtz, surprise contributor Braeden Bowman, newcomer Victor Olofsson and, potentially, top prospect Trevor Connelly.

Connelly, taken 19th overall in 2024 amid questions about his off-ice history, produced 14 goals and 49 points in 46 AHL games with Henderson last season. New head coach Ryan Craig has indicated the 20-year-old could get the first look on a third line with Hertl and Olofsson out of training camp. If he sticks, Connelly could quickly help fill the scoring void left by Dorofeyev.

Elite defensive metrics, uncertain crease and a new bench boss

Daily Faceoff highlights that Vegas quietly posted some of the league’s best defensive numbers at five-on-five last year, allowing the fewest expected goals and the second-fewest shots per 60 minutes. The problem came in net: the Knights finished 31st in five-on-five save percentage. Carter Hart, signed as a free agent during the season after being acquitted in connection with the 2018 Canadian World Junior investigation, carried the load in the playoffs with a 14–8 record and a .909 save percentage, but his game swung between excellent and erratic, including several nights with four goals against.

Then-head coach John Tortorella rode Hart throughout the run and bristled at the idea of turning to Adin Hill, at one point calling a reporter’s query on the subject “the stupidest question” he had heard. Hill, who backstopped Vegas to its 2023 championship and is signed through 2031, struggled through injuries and a .871 save percentage in just 27 regular-season appearances in 2025-26. Daily Faceoff sees the competition between Hart and Hill for the starting job as one of the defining storylines of the coming season.

On defence, the Knights bring back most of the group that powered their playoff march. Shea Theodore and Brayden McNabb again headline the blue line after heavy minutes and strong results last spring, though McNabb turns 36 in January. Rasmus Andersson, acquired from Calgary at the 2026 trade deadline and extended for seven years at an US$8.5-million AAV, is under pressure to rebound after he and Noah Hanifin posted the weakest underlying numbers on the team and failed to score during the playoffs. Vegas also flipped Kaedan Korczak to the Pittsburgh Penguins for Parker Wotherspoon to make room for Andersson’s new deal.

Behind the bench, the Knights have turned to a familiar face. After dismissing Bruce Cassidy late in the regular season and parting ways with Tortorella two days after the Cup Final loss, Vegas promoted Ryan Craig from Henderson of the AHL. The 44-year-old former NHL forward served as a Golden Knights assistant from 2017 to 2023 and has been instrumental in developing players such as Bowman, Connelly and Korczak with the Silver Knights.

Daily Faceoff still pegs Vegas as Western contender

Daily Faceoff’s preview characterizes the Pacific as the weakest of the NHL’s four divisions and still slots Vegas clearly at the top of that group. The outlet projects another division title and multiple playoff series wins, while suggesting the Knights could fall in the Western Conference Final this time rather than returning to the Stanley Cup Final. The key questions it raises: whether Stone can stay in the lineup, if Andersson can deliver top-pair value, and who ultimately claims the No. 1 goalie role.

If those issues break in Vegas’ favour and younger forwards such as Connelly and Holtz seize their opportunities, Daily Faceoff believes the Golden Knights have the talent to remain among the Western Conference’s elite in 2026-27.