Nobody saw it coming. The Vegas Golden Knights have traditionally been a strong five-on-five team from start to finish, relying on solid depth scoring to carry the load. However, 2025-26 is vastly different. Ladies and gentlemen, this shall be known as the year of the special teams.
Entering Tuesday's game against the New York Islanders, the Golden Knights had a power play percentage of 25% (tied for fifth in the NHL on Tuesday) and a penalty kill of 81.7% (tied for 11th in the NHL on Tuesday). It's almost like someone wrinkled Bruce Cassidy's Randy Travis poster and took away his Werther's Butterscotch. Suddenly, the special teams look great for the Golden Knights.
Bizarrely enough, both units have been mediocre for Vegas historically. The best power play showing before 2024-25's run was in 2019-20 (22%). The best penalty kill came in 2020-21 at 86.8%. However, the Golden Knights have had four straight seasons of penalty kill percentages below 80% entering the 2025-26 season.
Now? The tide appears to be shifting and everything's becoming shiny like it went through Colgate toothpaste. Usually, it's a one-or-the-other ordeal for the Golden Knights. If the power play's good one year, the penalty kill must stink. If it's the penalty kill, well, no power play goals for you!
But a two-for-one deal? That's like a Peter Pan Peanut Butter Alert! Still, that's one that the Golden Knights will gladly take. It's also why Vegas has suddenly turned the corner, getting nine points in its last five games.
The Vegas Golden Knights must continue the special teams trend, starting with four key players
Four players come to mind when it comes to the Golden Knights being "golden" on special teams. The first one is Shea Theodore, since he excels in both areas (and then some). This season, the Original Misfit has a power play goal and three power play assists.
But the most surprising thing about Theodore is how he also excels on the penalty kill. In fact, his transformation has been eye-opening for many Golden Knights fans.
In under half a season, @GoldenKnights defenseman Shea Theodore has become one of the league's best penalty killers. From Sportslogiq: 3rd with 1.16 dump outs per 2 minutes, and 14th in success rate at 93.3% on the PK. That's among 265 players with at least 30 minutes of PK time
— gary lawless (@garylawless) December 7, 2025
Speaking of penalty killers, Colton Sissons has made a difference for Vegas. He has a faceoff win percentage of 55.9% in 25 games, making him a key factor on the penalty kill. As for the power play, you have your usual suspects of Tomas Hertl and Pavel Dorofeyev, who have combined for 13 goals on the power play this season.
With Hertl in the slot and Dorofeyev sniping from anywhere, Vegas has become a special teams threat at every turn. It's something that has caught the fans off-guard, but in a good way. Sometimes, you want those pleasant surprises to hit you, bringing a smile to your face.
That has been the case for the Golden Knights' special teams, who've become a juggernaut in the NHL. With a blend of old faces (Reilly Smith and William Karlsson) and newer stars (Tomas Hertl and Pavel Dorofeyev), Vegas is reaping the rewards of two functioning units for the first time in franchise history.
Now, if you'll excuse me, Magnum P.I. is on. Excuse me before I yell, "BOB SAGET!"