LAS VEGAS — Joe Thornton had for years been a part of the Boston Bruins’ storied rivalry with the Montreal Canadiens, and has dressed for countless games against both the Los Angeles Kings and Anaheim Ducks in his 14-plus seasons with the Sharks.
Right now, though, no rivalry for the Sharks quite compares to playing the Vegas Golden Knights.
“I always thought that L.A. was probably going to be their big rival, or Anaheim,” Thornton said of the Golden Knights. “But no, it’s us.”
Everyone knows it, too, as meetings between the Sharks and Golden Knights carry with them a special kind of buzz, the kind that’s often lacking throughout the NHL right now.