By ALAN SNEL
LVSportsBiz.com
After the Vegas Golden Knights’ shutout shellacking of the San Jose Sharks, 7-0, in Game 1 of the second round series Thursday goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury was still in full gear as he walked like the Michelin Man through the VGK locker room to his corner stall.
As Fleury strode by, I quipped to the goalie, “More donuts for Las Vegas tomorrow morning.” (Fans attending Golden Knights games where the home team whitewashes the visiting team can receive a dozen free Krispy Kreme donuts the next day under a VGK business promotion with the donut maker.)
Fleury, flashing the perpetual smile, responded, “Yes, more donuts for everyone.”
It would be hard to find another person — let alone another National Hockey League player or professional athlete — who smiles more than the 33-year-old Fleury.
The thing is, it’s not contrived. The smile looks genuine every time I see the three-time Stanley Cup winner.
Fleury’s star power — he was the best-known player snapped up in the expansion draft — could have easily seduced the Golden Knights’ business and marketing staff to build a sales and marketing campaign around the six-foot, two-inch player with the chipper personality.
But the Golden Knights thought otherwise.
Golden Knights Chief Marketing Officer Brian Killingsworth explained to LVSportsBiz.com why the logo — and not a player — would be the face of the franchise.
In launching the Vegas Golden Knights, we wanted to celebrate the fact that as Las Vegas’ first major professional franchise, we truly are Vegas Born. From the start, our owner, Bill Foley, and General Manager George McPhee have said that our logo is the face of the franchise. Our approach has always been to highlight the brand over individual players and the Knight culture, to protect the unprotected, always advance, never retreat. The community has gravitated to this team like nothing I have ever seen in any other market.
— Brian Killingsworth, Vegas Golden Knights chief marketing officer
True, Fleury is a key leader on the team.
After the Golden Knights’ win Thursday night, LVSportsBiz.com asked VGK coach Gerard Gallant about Fleury’s demeanor and impact. Gallant: “He’s been our leader like we talked about. He comes to the rink and has fun. I talk about it all the time to you guys. He comes to the rink and he has fun and he enjoys it. He’s a guy that runs our group.”
With that type of star power and effervescent personality, Fleury could have easily been turned into the face of the inaugural-season expansion franchise. In fact, pro teams will sometimes display large murals of their star players on the sides of their home stadiums and arenas.
But not the Golden Knights.
Look at the images on the front of T-Mobile Arena where fans enter the venue.
It’s not just Fleury on the building. There are seven other players from forward David Perron to defenseman Nate Schmidt.
Besides, many other Golden Knights players enjoyed break-through seasons and are also fan favorites, from goal-scoring forward William Karlsson to veteran defenseman Deryk Engelland, who lives in Las Vegas year-round and gave the emotional, stirring Vegas Strong speech before the team’s regular season home opener Oct. 10.
The Golden Knights have chosen to market “team” over “individual star” and it’s paid off.
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The franchise has a variety of players who are followed by fans, from forward Jonathon Marchessault to rugged Alex Tuch.
The Golden Knights’ emphasis on team and a variety of personalities is a contrast to sports marketing in other sports, where the NBA touts its personality-driven league and baseball teams will showcase individual stars in promotional ads.
Even though Fleury has three shutouts in the Golden Knights’ first five playoff games, the Golden Knights have emphasized team and not an individual player.
The team has left that to the Las Vegas community. Bellagio, owned by MGM Resorts International, fashioned a statue of Fleury out of chocolate.
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Game 2 Notes
^ Today’s Game 2 will be televised locally by NBC affiliate, Channel 3, here in Las Vegas.
^ TV ratings for Golden Knights hockey soared Thursday night. NBCSN hit the jackpot in Las Vegas for Game 1, which delivered an 11.1 local TV rating in the Vegas market. That’s the best NHL game rating in Las Vegas for NBCSN. Its 19 share in Las Vegas for Game 1 was quite robust, too, as 19 percent of TV were tuned into the Knights game.
^ LVSportsBiz.com will be back at T-Mobile arena for Game 2 for more stories, photos and Facebook Live reports.
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