Quick Bites: Youth on display

The San Jose Sharks have once again defeated the Vegas Golden Knights this preseason to a score of 2-0.

With the team falling 2-3 in the preseason there were still highlights of the game that should garner all the fans attention about the direction of the team, especially from the youngsters.

The scoring came in the second period with a slick first goal from Thomas Bordeleau, but an even more impressive was the Sydney Crosby-esque pass from William Eklund behind the net to find Bordeleau on the short side for the opening.

another Bordsy goal vs. Vegas?

ANOTHER BORDSY GOAL VS. VEGAS pic.twitter.com/2d7Qj2nM97

— San Jose Sharks (@SanJoseSharks) October 4, 2023

Adin Hall, the former Sharks’ goaltender, was in net for the goal. He played the first half of the game for Vegas stopping 14 out of 15 shots.

Jacob MacDonald, a part of the return from the Matt Nieto and Ryan Merkley trade, ripped a shot from the blueline to go straight into the top left corner, beating Logan Thompson on the power play. Thompson played the second half of the game for Vegas and stopped 13 out of 14 shots for the night.

The Sharks have now defeated Las Vegas in each preseason game this year with Kaapo Kahkonen as the starter.

Youth magic

The Sharks youth movement was on full display Tuesday night, with Quentin Musty inserted into the lineup in a line with both Bordeleau and Eklund.

Eklund and Bordeleau both connected for the first goal of the night, but that does not mean that Musty didn’t get a decent amount of opportunities.

Musty had a one-time shot while on the powerplay with a booming rocket that got blocked. Musty showcased his shot and his maneuverability to get open. (The Sharks must have liked what they saw because they rewarded him with a new, three-year entry-level contract the next day.)

On the second goal Macdonald was set up by Alexander Barabonov and Filip Zadina – two players that have expiring contracts at the end of this season. Zadina has been inserted on the power play so expect him to grow his value while being on the special teams.

Not on the scoresheet but was still impressive during the game is Henry Thrun. Despite not putting up three points against Vegas as he did during the preseason opener, he was still shutting down Vegas in his defensive abilities.

Thrun has shown that he can efficiently stay on his guy, pressuring him to either take the play out of the Sharks zone or to make the opponent make a mistake. Without touching the puck, Thrun can manipulate the play which is good news for the Sharks as they are going into this season without Erik Karlsson who was able to manipulate the play through offensive capabilities.

Kaapo Kahkonen

Kahkonen won the game, stopping all 18 shots on net for the first shutout of the Sharks preseason. We only saw a Kahkonen shutout once last season, but as mentioned in the first preseason victory, fans should not be surprised if David Quinn decides to make Kahkonen the starter coming into the season.

Before we look ahead, let’s look at what he did this matchup. Not only did Kahkonen get a shutout but he looked good doing it. He stopped grade A opportunities for Vegas such as good positioning to stop close-quarter one-timers.

Looking at Natural Stat Trick’s heat map from the game, you can see that while the Sharks’ defensemen did a good job for most of the game keeping the shots in places where Kahkonen could see them, there were some chances in close. Kahkonen did a good job keeping those chances, especially the ones in the crease, out of the net.

Between Blackwood and Kahkonen the only goaltender that has gotten wins this preseason has been Kahkonen. Both of those wins were against Vegas, the Sharks opponent for the opening night of the regular season.

Can the streak continue?

It is no secret that when fans hear a Sharks versus Vegas matchup, they expect a high-intensity matchup.

The Sharks and Vegas rivalry has been brewing since the Knights were welcomed into the league. The Sharks are no longer playoff favorites but the bitterness between the two teams has still grown.

Bordeleau continued that chain reaction a few years ago, when he helped eliminate Vegas from contending in the playoffs with the shootout victory two years ago.

With the Sharks winning two straight games against Vegas this preseason, the team should look to carry the momentum toward the regular season opener. If the Sharks can beat Vegas in the home opener, it would give a right-off-the-bat confidence that we did not see last season during the start and grow the rivalry with a message from the start.

Now, imagine if Bordeleau was part of the home opening lineup against Vegas. The message is louder for Vegas and other playoff-contending teams that the Sharks can compete.

The San Jose Sharks will play the Los Angeles Kings on tonight at 6 p.m. to conclude the preseason. The game will be played in Salt Lake City as part of the Frozen Fury.