‘This City Is Home Now’: Golden Knights With Final Hurrah At Fan Thank You Rally

By ALAN SNEL

LVSportsBiz.com

 

It was June 13 and 5:30 p.m. and it was supposed to be Game 7 between North America’s Miracle Workers commonly known as the Vegas Golden Knights and the Alex Ovechkin-led Washington Capitals.

 

But sometimes dream seasons end before the last chapter is written and the Capitals took care of business — and took the Stanley Cup — at Game 5 at T-Mobile Arena Thursday. LVSportsBiz.com with the Game 5 story.

 

Earlier this week, the Capitals and Ovechkin celebrated their franchise’s first Stanley Cup championship, while the first-year Golden Knights were left Wednesday to thank their fans at a crowd of several thousand crammed into the Fremont Street Experience at the 3rd Street Stage outside The D casino-hotel.

 

The Golden Knights put on the 75-minute event to thank its raucous fans and salute its new hockey home of Las Vegas.

 

It was more a massive family gathering than a team-staged event, as everyone from VGK General Manager George McPhee to TV broadcasters Dave Goucher and Shane Hnidy to chatty defenseman Nate Schmidt told the fans wedged at Fremont and 3rd under the big LED canopy what this amazing year meant to them.

 

“It was the greatest year of my life for sure,” McPhee said.

 

Hnidy said, “It’s all about the fans. This team outlived expectations. The best fans in the National Hockey League are now here in Las Vegas .  .  . This city is home now.”

 

And Schmidt put it simply, “It’s the most fun time I’ve had in my life.”

 

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It was a final hurrah for the Golden Knights fans, who came to a team fanfest in January at this very location later after the start of the season because of the Oct. 1 shooting massacre on the Strip.

 

The Knight Line drummers banged out the season’s final performance and emcees Mark Shunock and Wayne “Big D” Danielson stoked the crowd and interviewed players as they came out. Arena PA announcer Bruce Cusick was on hand to introduce the players.

 

Owner Bill Foley thanked the fans via video.

 

And then at 6:45 p.m. — it would have been nearing the end of the Game 7 second period if the Finals had gone the full seven games — the crowd began dispersing from the Fremont Street Experience.

 

And an epic season was a wrap and fans promised each other to renew this new annual rite in September.

 

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