05/01/24
June 14, 2023
The Vegas Golden Knights Win First NHL Championship: Golden Knights cap the 5 game series with a 9-3 rout and a hat trick by team captain Mark Stone.
I assume they are "Las Vegas Knights del Oro" on Hispanic heritage night.
What a stretch in the second period! I came in from a walk and it was 2-1; 13 minutes of game time later it was 6-1--with a dagger 2 seconds before intermission--and the game was over.
posted by bender at 10:30 AM on June 14, 2023
I look forward to hearing any celebration stories from our in-house Golden Knights fans. Hopefully y'all are still at it. After the 'Canes won in the Cup in 2006, I was out all night
posted by NoMich at 11:01 AM on June 14, 2023
Not to be outdone, the lowly Athletics, who currently play in Oakland, have won seven straight games.
They won the last two at home against the best team in baseball to the delight of large boisterous crowds who don't want the team to move to Vegas.
posted by beaverboard at 12:28 PM on June 14, 2023
Congrats to the Panthers for their great run - they bounced the historically good Bruins and their new coach before ultimately losing in decisive fashion to the coach the Bruins decided they didn't like.
posted by beaverboard at 12:37 PM on June 14, 2023
The Golden Knights second period goal differential in these playoffs was the best since the Edmonton Oilers in the 1980s.
I went into this series thinking Dallas had lost to an inferior team in the previous round. Vegas has cured me of that belief.
posted by rcade at 01:32 PM on June 14, 2023
I'm not a Knights fan, per se, but it's pretty easy as a hockey fan in Reno to get swept up in the excitement of our in-state team bringing home the Cup. And the Knights' impact on how Nevada as a whole views hockey has been incredible. To wit:
Until 2020, Reno was the largest metropolitan area in the continental United States without an ice rink. We finally got our rink in 2020 (and I no longer had to drive an hour-plus to South Lake Tahoe to play). Reno Ice was in the works before the Knights started playing, but it created the enthusiasm that gave the 501(c) that runs it the ability to finance construction.
We had no youth hockey in Reno (duh), and kids who wanted to play had to go to Tahoe or Roseville, California (2 hours away). We now have a vibrant house league with 4 teams in each division, as well as a very successful travel program that is one of the top teams in the Pacific division.
Both of my kids (now 7 and 6) started skating in a learn-to-play program that was heavily subsidized by the Knights. The inaugural session (50 kids) sold out in a week. They added a second session that also sold out in a week. Since then, every learn-to-play session, 3 per year, has been sold out.
Our adult league is now 6 divisions: A through E and "Ice Breakers," an adult learn-to-play program. There is a waiting list for new teams to join every division. Ice Breakers sells out every session.
Oh, and one edit--our first hockey coach and builder of the youth hockey program, Mike Harder, who is the all-time leading scorer at Colgate University, just returned to be head coach at his alma mater.
It has truly been amazing, and I attribute much of it to the Knights stirring up the love of hockey in Nevada. I fully anticipate that the Cup will visit our rink this summer, and you can bet your ass I'll be there!!
posted by tahoemoj at 01:37 PM on June 14, 2023
I hope that the Cup visits your rink in Reno before Phil Kessel gets his turn with it.
posted by beaverboard at 02:08 PM on June 14, 2023
I'm not a Knights fan, per se, but it's pretty easy as a hockey fan in Reno to get swept up in the excitement of our in-state team bringing home the Cup.
Yeah, the Blues' Cup run in 2019 was a little bittersweet (as a Stars fan the round 2 game 7 2OT loss really stung), but it was a fantastic time in the city. My years in Dallas didn't include any local chips (let's not bring up the '06 NBA finals) so it was a whole new experience for me. Glad you're enjoying it and hope you get a pic with Lord Stanley!
posted by Ufez Jones at 04:24 PM on June 14, 2023
If he gets it first, I'll be happy if he leaves me a hot dog.
posted by tahoemoj at 04:26 PM on June 14, 2023
tahoemoj: the same happened here after the Hurricanes started play in NC back in '97. We went from maybe one adult league and no youth leagues to having a billion of each, including many youth travel teams that go all over North America for tournaments and such.
The Triangle area even now has 18 high school club level teams that were A) started by the students just this year, and 2) packing the rinks with a thousand+ kids every game. It's only a matter of time when these high schools take the teams on officially as varsity level sports.
For a bit of context, my northern Michigan hometown high school just began playing varsity level hockey only about 10 years ago and they still have to travel to other towns to host their home games. They even have to travel hours down state to play a lot of their road games.
Having a consistently good NHL team nearby matters.
Here's a discussion from this morning of these local HS club level teams with a coach of Middle Creek HS (who is also the head coach for the NC State club hockey team, the Ice Pack).
posted by NoMich at 04:29 PM on June 14, 2023
I believe that this is also the first championship for a four word team name, right?
Nope, this is wrong as the team is officially named Vegas Golden Knights