It was a quick, successful getaway to Denver for the Golden Knights rookies, winning both of their games of the Rookie Showcase over the weekend.

The Knights manhandled their way to an 8-1 win over the Utah Mammoth on Saturday, then hung on for a 3-2 victory over the host Colorado Avalanche on Sunday.

“It’s tough on these guys. Back to back, less than 24 hours, especially this early in the year,” Silver Knights coach Ryan Craig said. “We just found a way to win.”

Here are three takeaways from the weekend:

No Connelly, no problem

The Knights handled business without top prospect, forward Trevor Connelly, who is week to week with a lower-body injury.

Not having their 2024 first-round pick in the fold for a second straight training camp hinders things short term. The Knights would like to see what the 19-year-old can do with NHL-level talent around him.

Connelly would’ve been on the top line if available, but the trio assembled without him made an impact.

Left wing Mathieu Cataford had three assists, and center Matyas Sapovaliv and right wing Braeden Bowman had a goal and an assist through two games.

Cataford is likely to see a middle-six role in his first full season in Henderson, and Sapovaliv should see a more consistent top-six role. Bowman was second on the Silver Knights with 36 points last season.

“They’re pretty easy to play with,” Bowman said Friday. “We’re just looking to make sure we’re working hard, doing the right things.”

Goaltending strong

The Knights’ netminders were the strength of the weekend, to no one’s surprise.

Carl Lindbom stopped 31 shots in his start Saturday, and Cameron Whitehead finished with 29 saves in his win on Sunday.

“Both guys were very good,” Craig said.

The Silver Knights have questions throughout their lineup heading into next season. Goaltending isn’t one of them.

The expectation is it will be a shared crease between Lindbom, the seventh-round pick out of Sweden from 2021, and Whitehead, the fourth-round pick out of Northeastern back in 2022.

But Lindbom should be getting the lion’s share of the starts after a strong finish to his first year of pro hockey. The 22-year-old went 18-15-2 with a .912 save percentage and three shutouts.

There’s also a chance Lindbom could challenge to be the backup to Adin Hill should he have a strong training camp and preseason. That remains Akira Schmid’s battle to lose, but there’s interest to see what Lindbom can do against NHL talent.

Training camp opens at City National Arena on Thursday.

Making the switch

Joe Fleming came to the Knights as a defenseman who wasn’t afraid to throw his body around.

He’s been doing the same now, but as a forward. Fleming switched positions last season while with ECHL Tahoe and has been there ever since.

“I talked to the staff at the end of the year and they felt that would be the best spot for me to play this upcoming year,” Fleming said. “I’m excited for the year.”

Fleming is not afraid to get physical. He had 88 penalty minutes in 35 games with the Silver Knights.

Now he’s getting to do that on the fourth line. Fleming scored twice over the weekend, including a rush goal on Sunday.

<blockquote class=”twitter-tweet”><p lang=”en” dir=”ltr”>This one’s for the Joe Fleming fan club �� <a href=”https://t.co/wEA2i1OJh3”>pic.twitter.com/wEA2i1OJh3</a></p>&mdash; Vegas Golden Knights (@GoldenKnights) <a href=”https://twitter.com/GoldenKnights/status/1967333522156515479?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>September 14, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src=”https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js” charset=”utf-8”></script>

“He can skate,” Craig said. “You can see he’s getting into areas where the puck’s coming to him. He’s driving the puck, he’s playing north. He should be proud of his weekend.”

Fleming said he hadn’t played forward since the days his dad coached his youth team. Whenever there was a need for an extra forward, Fleming’s dad would throw him out there to get some shots.

“Just playing hard,” Fleming said. “Playing the right way, doing everything right. Even though I’m a forward (now), I still got to defend well in my own zone.”

Contact Danny Webster at dwebster@reviewjournal.com. Follow @DannyWebster21 on X.