Sharks kickoff preseason with impressive 3-0 win over Golden Knights

SAN JOSE — The San Jose Sharks preseason opener against the Vegas Golden Knights won't carry the same intensity as when the two teams square off to open up the regular season on Oct. 9, but the organization is hoping last night's game will help the young squad establish an identity.

The Sharks bested the Golden Knights by a score of 3-0 in the first tilt of the preseason thanks in large part to a dominant second period where they got scoring from two of their veterans. John Klingberg scored on a shot from the point that beat Knights goalie Carl Lindbom blocker side to open up the scoring.

On a play that will hopefully be a sign of things to come for the young squad, Jeff Skinner's goal late in the second frame was assisted by crisp passes from Will Smith and Sam Dickinson who found the veteran deep in the slot.

Dickinson said he decided to make the best out of getting caught slightly out of position before he jumped into the rush to pick up the primary assist.

“I kind of got confused behind our net in our zone,” Dickinson said. “It was a penalty, and the goalie was standing in a weird spot, and I didn't know what was going on. I figured I would get up in the rush and then it was a really nice pass by (Will Smith) and then I went down to get around (the defender) to head towards the net.”

San Jose capped off the scoring on an empty netter from Tyler Toffoli to cement the victory after a key faceoff win in the defensive zone from Quinten Musty. Musty’s faceoff win found the stick of Dickinson who flipped the puck to Toffoli on his way out of the zone toward Vegas' vacant net.

Though the play is not likely to make it on to any highlight reels, Sharks coach Ryan Warsofsky said he was impressed by how Musty handled himself in a potentially pivotal situation.

“Our meeting today was about face offs and being more competitive on face offs. That's not just our centers, but our wingers executing so it was nice to see that today,” Warsofsky said.

For his part, San Jose netminder Alex Nedeljkovic picked up the shutout and helped keep the game scoreless when the Golden Knights applied heavy pressure in parts of the first period. Vegas outshot San Jose 9-4 in the opening 20 minutes of action with Nedeljkovic doing well to cover the low shots coming from deep in the slot, especially while the team worked to kill off Egor Afanasyev's tripping minor.

Unlike some of the younger Sharks, Nedeljkovic isn't exactly in the midst of an intense battle to earn a spot on the roster. The veteran goalie was brought on with the idea that he would split time with Yaroslav Askarov to start the season. Despite not having as much to prove as the rookies hoping to make the roster on opening night, it was good to see the experience shine through with so much youth on the ice for both teams.

Another veteran whose spot in the lineup is a virtual guarantee is Skinner who is playing his first season in teal after a stint with Edmonton last year. He was on the receiving end of young Dickinson's pass for the second goal of the game and said he was impressed with how some of his younger linemates performed in the first game at the Shark Tank. Though it wasn't quite the complete 60-minute performance they hope to produce win the team is in midseason form, Skinner thinks things are gradually headed in the right direction.

“Obviously it’s the first game so it’s going to take some fine tuning, but I thought (Nedeljkovic) was great and we had some really good penalty kills,” he said. “There's a lot of good things. Mistakes are going to happen, and you just learn from them and keep plugging away. That's part of the process at this point,” Skinner said.

To state the obvious, it is not yet time for the Sharks to think about raising another banner, especially with their recent struggles in that department.

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But with young and unproven players on the ice for both squads early on in the preseason it was certainly an encouraging sign to see an impact from some of the most talked about prospects in the organization.

Top prospect Michael Misa was kept off the scoresheet but still managed to look like he belonged out there by being involved in several scoring opportunities including a near breakaway situation in the first period.

Whether they sweep the preseason or lose the remainder of these warmup games, it will not be a strong indicator of how San Jose will fare in the 2025-26 season. Lineups get mixed and matched and ice time will be given to prospects and players on the fringes.

Though likely not a playoff team, seeing guys like Dickenson, Musty, and Misa get praise is a positive sign for what could be, a year or two down the line. Fans have been hearing positive reports out of camp all off-season and seeing small glimpses of that level of play in an actual game can't help but ease anxiety about the state of the farm system.

If the future is teal as the slogan claims, this is what the future of this franchise will hopefully be.