The Vegas Golden Knights enter the week of Jan. 12, 2026, riding high on a four-game winning streak and sitting atop the Pacific Division, despite navigating significant injury trouble in the crease.

Mitch Marner Faces the Maple Leafs

The headline event of the week is Thursday, Jan. 15, when Mitch Marner faces the Toronto Maple Leafs for the first time since joining Vegas. Marner has been excellent recently and logged his 700th career NHL game last week. This matchup is widely anticipated as a “revenge game” narrative for the star winger.

Goaltending “Next Man Up”

The Knights are currently relying on backup goaltender Akira Schmid, who has performed admirably.

Carter Hart is considered week-to-week after suffering a lower-body injury against the Columbus Blue Jackets on Jan. 8.

Adin Hill (lower-body) has returned to practice but has not yet been cleared for game action, leaving the net to Schmid for the immediate future.

Mark Stone’s Hot Streak

Captain Mark Stone recently tied a franchise record with a seven-game goal streak. Although the goal streak ended in Sunday’s win against the San Jose Sharks, he remains one of the hottest players in the league, tallying three assists in that game to keep his point streak alive.

Shea Theodore Returns

A major boost to the blue line, defenseman Shea Theodore returned to the lineup on Saturday (Jan. 10) after missing nearly a month. He made an immediate impact, scoring a goal in his first game back vs. the St. Louis Blues.

First Place in the Pacific

With their 7-2 win over San Jose on Sunday (Jan. 11), Vegas has won four straight games. They have reclaimed the top spot in the Pacific Division with 54 points, narrowly edging out the Edmonton Oilers.

Golden Knights Schedule Jan 12 – 18

DateOpponentTime (ET)Time (Local/PT)VenueWed, Jan. 14@ Los Angeles Kings10:00 PM7:00 PMCrypto.com ArenaThu, Jan. 15vs. Toronto Maple Leafs9:30 PM6:30 PMT-Mobile ArenaSat, Jan. 17vs. Nashville Predators10:00 PM7:00 PMT-Mobile Arena

AI tools were used to support the creation or distribution of this content, however, it has been carefully edited and fact-checked by a member of The Hockey Writers editorial team. For more information on our use of AI, please visit our Editorial Standards page.

SUBSCRIBE FOR FREE TO OUR GOLDEN KNIGHTS SUBSTACK NEWSLETTER