The fans left the SAP Center in shock. Heads down, a mix of silence and confusion infected the building. The San Jose Sharks had the lead. The Vegas net was empty. And the Sharks just slipped up in the third period. Some how, some way, the San Jose Sharks lost to the Vegas Golden Knights 4-3 in overtime.
First period
The energy was there at the start of the first. Vegas trotted out its fourth line to start things off, clearly unhappy with how things ended the night before. A 6-5 shootout loss to Los Angeles meant the Colton Sissons line was on the ice for the opening faceoff. In response, Dmitry Orlov, Barclay Goodrow, Ryan Reaves, Adam Gaudette, Shakir Mukhamadullin and in net Alex Nedeljkovic started the game off for the Sharks.
The Sharks won the draw, and immediately, Ryan Reaves got in a scuffle with some Knights, setting a physical tone. The Sharks spent the first minute in the Vegas zone. The next line followed with a few shots of its own, a couple of good shot attempts from William Eklund and Timothy Liliegren.
And with 14:29 left, Jeff Skinner was the first Shark of the season to score. He drove one in with the help of Mukhamadullin and Ty Dellandrea. It was Skinner’s first goal as a Shark, first of the season and 700th NHL point.
But the Golden Knights didn’t allow San Jose to pull ahead. At 11:51 left in the first, Brett Howden slid one past Nedeljkovic, his first of the season, tying the game 1-0.
After that, the Sharks’ energy died down. Mukhamadullin took two minutes for high-sticking, and Vegas was on its first power play of the game. It resulted in a Lilidergen breakaway, showing off his speed, but nothing was produced.
The last six minutes, however, for the Sharks, were full of shots and great opportunities. Looking at the heat map from Natural Stat Trick, through the whole game in all situations, the Sharks were on top of shots, creating a dense dent in the circle.
The score remained 1-1 at the end of the frame, but the Sharks skated off ready to carry the energy over to the second.
Second period
Just three minutes in, William Karlsson took a penalty for cross-checking, putting the Sharks on the team’s first power play of the game and season, but the players could not capitalize on it.
But lucky for the Sharks, Tomas Hertl was put in the box for boarding Dellandrea. It must be weird being on the other side, as he is a significant piece of the Sharks’ alumni.
Not only that, but Mitch Marner joined him after a slashing penalty. The Sharks were playing 5-on-3, and, as expected, there was production. His first of the season, Alex Wennberg just tapped one in off a shot attempt by Eklund, from John Klingberg.
The Knights did spend a bit of time in the Sharks’ zone this period, but Nedeljkovic was a brick wall.
With five minutes left, Mukhamadullin took another penalty, this time for hooking Pavel Dorofeyev, and Dorofeyev got his revenge immediately. He found the back of the net for Vegas on the power play, tying the game for the second time. This was his fourth goal of the season.
Then, in the last three minutes, Gaudette hit the penalty box for hooking Howden, which knocked the net off its moorings. The second period, similar to the first, also ended in a draw.
Third period
The energy was pulsing through the Sharks to start the third, and a few minutes in, Philipp Kurashev brought one home from Orlov and Mukhamadullin. And the rules are, three pucks in the net, three tacos you get.
Hertl ended up in the penalty box again for an illegal check on Skinner, putting the Sharks on the team’s fourth power play of the game, but nothing came from it either.
The Sharks created some real chances in the third frame, especially efforts from the 70’s line (Eklund, Toffoli, Celebrini) with the addition of Smith.
That being said, Smith was then sent to the box for two minutes for hooking shortly thereafter, putting Vegas on its own power play. While the Sharks were able to keep the Golden Knights from scoring, Vegas kept coming. With two minutes left, Vegas pulled Akira Schmid for the extra attacker, and that’s when things got weird, seriously.
The net was empty. The Sharks had a clear path to clear the puck. But an overzealous player cleared the puck so high that it hit the scoreboard and the faceoff was brought back into the Sharks’ zone. That was the first issue. The Sharks gained control of the puck again and Eklund managed to get control of the puck and had a breakaway to try and seal the game, but he missed the net. He also missed on the subsequent wraparound, barely.
With Vegas coming back the otherway, Jack Eichel lobbed the puck up into the air from the blueline like he was shooting a three-pointer at the buzzer, it bounced funny, slipped through the legs of Nedeljkovic and slid into the net tying the game.
While Tyler Toffoli tried a few of his own to get one back, it didn’t work. The game went into overtime.
Overtime
Celebrini, Smith, and Leddy started the 3-on-3 action. And it ended quickly. Nedeljkovic left the net and sprinted to close to the blueline in his own zone to try and prevent a 2-on-0, but he was beaten to the puck by Reilly Smith, who passed it back to Shea Theodore, who fed it back to Smith for the easy tap-in.
unbelievable. Alex Nedeljkovic has had a nightmare finish. pic.twitter.com/RqACtJFNsA
— NHL News (@PuckReportNHL) October 10, 2025
For his part, Nedeljkovic didn’t shy away from the media postgame and answered questions.
Nedeljkovic, on the last 2 goals: "Just got caught in between on the 3rd one, whether to go out & try to catch it in the air or let it bounce & hop. "
— Sheng Peng (@Sheng_Peng) October 10, 2025
"Rather put the puck in my hand & hopefully put it into space or onto our own sticks as opposed to face a 2-on-0 [in OT]. Just…
Whether you agree with him or not, he had a reason for the way he played the puck.
“Rather put the puck in my hand & hopefully put it into space or onto our own sticks as opposed to face a 2-on-0 [in OT]. Just didn’t execute properly,” he told the media.
Postgame
Following a hard-fought game that didn’t go the San Jose Sharks’ way, Head Coach Ryan Warsofsky remained composed and optimistic in his postgame remarks, underscoring the team’s effort and resilience.
“We played a solid hockey game,” Warsofsky said. “Our guys will learn from it. We’ll move on, we’ll pick up the pieces, and we’ll go at it tomorrow.”
Despite the loss, Warsofsky was encouraged by the competitive level his team showed and stressed the importance of staying focused on growth and consistency.
The game featured an unfortunate bounce that led to a critical moment, but Warsofsky quickly shifted the focus to team unity and support.
“Things happen for whatever reasons,” he noted. “There’s a bounce, and we got to pick up Ned, pick up each other, and get at it again tomorrow.”
Goaltender Nedeljkovic, who had a tough night, still has the full backing of his coach.
“We’re gonna need Ned. You know you need two goalies in this league. He’s a really good goalie. We’re gonna pick him up. He’s gonna be just fine,” said Warsofsky.
Warsofsky also highlighted the leadership and experience in the locker room as key to bouncing back.
“We got a veteran group in there. Guys are going to pick up the pieces, so we’re not too concerned,” he said.
Looking at the bigger picture, Warsofsky remained upbeat about the team’s trajectory.
“Nine times out of 10 I’ll take that effort and that compete,” he said. “We’ll start putting some more in the back of the net and playing a little bit more on the attacks.”
The message was clear: there’s no panic in San Jose. Just a team focused on building, learning, and coming back stronger.
Scoring Summary Vegas Golden Knights at San Jose Sharks Oct. 9, 2025
First Period
5:31 SJS Jeff Skinner from Ty Dellandrea and Shakir Mukhamadullin
8:09 VGK Brett Howden from Keegan Kolesar and Ben Hutton
Second Period
6:59 SJS Alex Wennberg from William Eklund and John Klingberg on the power play
14:22 VGK Pavel Dorofeyev from Mark Stone and Jack Eichel on the power play
Third Period
2:59 SJS Philipp Kurashev from Dmitry Orlov and Shakir Mukhamadullin
18:26 VGK Jack Eichel from Mark Stone and Tomas Hertl
Overtime
1:24 VGK Reilly Smith from Shea Theodore
