Over the weekend, the Golden Knights prospects took the ice at the South Suburban Sports Complex in Highlands Ranch, Colorado. VGK’s rookies put forth a pair of excellent performances as a team, walking away with a pair of wins, 8-1 over Utah and 3-2 over Colorado.

(Photo Credit: @Avalanche on X/Twitter)

These types of “tournaments” are held every year, and having watched just about every game over the course of Vegas’ nine seasons, I can confidently say this is the best the group in gold has ever looked. The Golden Knights carried the play for the majority of both games, felt dangerous in the offensive zone and on the rush consistently, and looked like a team that’s been playing together for years (not four days as they actually have) defensively.

Here are eight takeaways from the games.

Braeden Bowman is a stud. He’s not particularly big, he’s not the fastest guy on the ice, and he rarely does anything overly flashy. Instead, he’s just a damn good hockey player who makes the right play every time he’s near the puck. He was noticeable just about every shift he took in Colorado, both offensively and defensively, and he elevates the game of the players around him. There probably isn’t a spot quite yet for him on the NHL squad, but don’t be surprised at all if he’s one of the first call-ups.

What a weekend for the two goalies. Carl Lindbom got the first game and looked like a seasoned pro in the net. He’s excellent at stopping anything that comes in along the ice, which was a majority of the shots he faced against the Mammoth prospects. He wasn’t tested nearly as much as Cameron Whitehead, who also put forward a solid outing. Whitehead made one incredible back-door stop and had to deny a few other Grade A opportunities. VGK clearly had the best goalies of the three teams on the weekend.

Joe Fleming’s move to forward has gotten off to a rousing start. He scored three times in the two games and looked extremely comfortable with the puck on his stick. Will be interested to see how this develops over a much larger sample size.

If there’s one skill in hockey that’s more important than any other, it’s the ability to put the puck in the net. Kai Uchacz has it. He was a menace in the bumper spot on the power play in the first game and finished off a dangerous chance with ease in the second one. He and Bowman are excellent free agent finds and really help the depth of the prospect pool.

I’m still trying to figure out Jackson Hallum. The speed at which he plays is so much fun to watch, and it’s impossible to miss him when he’s out there, but it very rarely materializes into much. There was one moment on the penalty kill where he was able to break up a play high in the zone, then singlehandedly use his speed to create a breakaway chance. He was hauled down for a penalty. At some point, maybe it’ll all click, and he can turn into the player many hoped he’d become. It hasn’t happened yet, though.

Mateo Nobert is going to be one of the more interesting players among the prospects. He’s still quite raw, and needs to mature a lot physically to make an impact at the professional level, but there’s a lot to like in how he sees the game. Beyond that, he’s technically skilled enough to make plays that most players at his age can’t. There was one moment in which he carried the puck into the zone, curled back up to the blue line, then flipped a brilliant saucer pass to a teammate flying in. Mark Stone would be proud.

Tuomas Uronen was one of the players I was most excited to watch in these two games because we haven’t had many chances to watch him in this type of setting. The first game was underwhelming as he was hardly noticeable offensively despite VGK putting up eight goals. He started to make some more plays in the second game, including a gem of a backhand pass on the rush for an assist on a Fleming goal. He’s one to follow closely in the AHL this year.

There’s probably not a more exciting player to watch among the Vegas prospects than Ben Hemmerling. The engine this guy plays with is infectious. He’s constantly flying around out there, and you really never know when he might pop up out of nowhere to make a play. He’s also willing to try some fancy stuff. He had a number of no-look passes and a few nifty moves with the puck on his stick. Not entirely sure how much of it is going to actually work consistently at higher levels, but it sure is enjoyable to watch him play.