{"id":461187,"date":"2026-09-12T02:34:17","date_gmt":"2026-09-12T02:34:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/461187\/"},"modified":"2026-09-12T02:34:17","modified_gmt":"2026-09-12T02:34:17","slug":"golden-knights-prospects-open-rookie-camp-ahead-of-san-jose-showcase","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/461187\/","title":{"rendered":"Golden Knights prospects open rookie camp ahead of San Jose showcase"},"content":{"rendered":"

LAS VEGAS \u2014 Before the veterans reclaim the rink at City National Arena, the Vegas Golden Knights\u2019 prospects are getting an opportunity to show how close they are to taking the next step.<\/p>\n

Vegas opened rookie camp Friday with one practice before traveling to San Jose for games against the Utah Mammoth on Saturday and Colorado Avalanche on Sunday.<\/p>\n

WATCH | Golden Knights prospects open rookie camp ahead of San Jose showcase<\/p>\n

Golden Knights prospects open rookie camp ahead of San Jose showcase<\/p>\n

The camp roster features 23 players, ranging from recent draft picks to experienced prospects preparing to compete for NHL opportunities.<\/p>\n

Henderson Silver Knights head coach Joel Ward is leading the group through the weekend. With limited preparation time, Ward said the organization is prioritizing effort and execution over a complete understanding of its system.<\/p>\n

\"Golden<\/p>\n

KTNV<\/p>\n

\u201cThe messaging for them is to get out there and try to execute and just kind of see their compete level,\u201d Ward said.<\/p>\n

Trevor Connelly enters camp with his sights set on earning an NHL roster spot. The Golden Knights\u2019 2024 first-round pick remained in Las Vegas for much of the summer, focusing on his strength and stability after dealing with injuries.<\/p>\n

\"Golden<\/p>\n

KTNV<\/p>\n

\u201cI feel like this was a really big summer for me,\u201d Connelly said. \u201cI feel the strongest I\u2019ve ever been, most stable I\u2019ve ever been, and I think my game\u2019s in the best shape it\u2019s ever been in.\u201d<\/p>\n

Connelly recorded 49 points in 46 games for Henderson last season. He said he wants to display a more complete 200-foot game while making the most of his opportunity at main training camp.<\/p>\n

\"Golden<\/p>\n

KTNV<\/p>\n

Other prospects are beginning much different chapters.<\/p>\n

Noel Pakarinen, Vegas\u2019 seventh-round selection in the 2026 NHL draft, is preparing for his first season in North America with the Western Hockey League\u2019s Penticton Vees. The 17-year-old forward earned rookie-of-the-year honors in Finland\u2019s U20 league last season.<\/p>\n

\"Golden<\/p>\n

KTNV<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m really looking forward to the games,\u201d Pakarinen said. \u201cI\u2019m just excited to put the Vegas jersey on.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben Hemmerling, meanwhile, is attending his fifth rookie camp. After injuries limited him to 17 games during his first professional season, the 2022 sixth-round pick broke out with 50 points in 68 games for Henderson last year.<\/p>\n

\"Golden<\/p>\n

KTNV<\/p>\n

That experience has also changed his role within the group.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m the old guy now, so it\u2019s a little different in that way,\u201d Hemmerling said. \u201cI just take more of a leadership role, bringing young guys along. I remember when it was my first year coming, so it was a little intimidating.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Golden Knights face Utah at 3 p.m. Saturday and Colorado at 1 p.m. Sunday before returning to Las Vegas for training camp.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"LAS VEGAS \u2014 Before the veterans reclaim the rink at City National Arena, the Vegas Golden Knights\u2019 prospects…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":461188,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[29],"tags":[30335,30336,30337,30338,30339,30340,30341,30342,896,30343,88,90,89],"class_list":["post-461187","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-san-jose","tag-13-action-news","tag-channel-13","tag-go-knights-go","tag-hockey-in-las-vegas","tag-hockey-in-vegas","tag-ktnv-tv-channel-13","tag-las-vegas-hockey","tag-las-vegas-sports","tag-national-hockey-league","tag-nhl-in-las-vegas","tag-san-jose","tag-san-jose-headlines","tag-san-jose-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/461187","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=461187"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/461187\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/461188"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=461187"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=461187"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=461187"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}