Golden Knights Remember October One Before Friday’s VGK-LA Preseason Game At T-Mobile Arena; Final: Knights 4 Kings 0
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By Alan Snel of LVSportsBiz.com
Four years ago today the Vegas Golden Knights completed a preseason game against the San Jose Knights at T-Mobile Arena and then about an hour later life changed forever in Las Vegas.
On Oct. 1, 2017, a gunman killed 58 people at an outdoor country music festival on the Strip near Mandalay Bay and more than 500 others were injured.
Today is a day filled with subdued emotions as Las Vegas remembers the four-year anniversary of this nation’s worse mass shooting in terms of lives lost. Two more people have died since being injured at the Route 91 festival concert and the death toll has reached a gut-wrenching 60.
Tonight, the Vegas Golden Knights play a preseason game once again on Oct. 1. In the bizarre world of professional sports and signings, the coach of the Sharks at the time in 2017 four years ago was Pete DeBoer, the current VGK coach.
After tonight’s VGK win over Los Angeles in the preseason’s third home game, LVSportsBiz.com asked DeBoer what he remembered from that night four years ago.
DeBoer said it was a night of shock and sadness and that the 5 PM preseason game between San Jose and Vegas had the Sharks jetting back to San Jose before the shooting, which started a little after 10 PM. DeBoer noted that if the game had started later like 7 PM, some players and/or staff could have potentially been at that outdoor music festival. “It scares the crap out of you,” DeBoer said at tonight’s postgame presser.
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Layered atop the emotional day in Las Vegas is the daily COVID-19 pandemic, which has claimed the lives of 700,000 Americans. At the Golden Knights game at T-Mobile Arena, the protocol requires all fans to wear masks to comply with the state/county indoor mask requirement. A mile and a half away to the south, the Raiders require fans attending home games at Allegiant Stadium to show proof of COVID vaccination. After showing vax proof, fans inside Allegiant Stadium do not have to wear masks at Raiders home games.
The Golden Knights held a blood drive at their Summerlin HQ at City National Arena today after there was a sunrise ceremony to remember Oct. 1 at the Clark County government center.
Four years ago on Oct. 10, 2017 when the Knights played their first regular season home game, there was a jumble of intense emotions as fans and Las Vegas welcomed their first major league team game while also dealing with the trauma and grieving from the mass shooting that affected so many.
A picture from four years ago via LVSportsBiz photographer Daniel Clark:
They announced attendance of 17,000 for preseason home game one and 16,000 plus for game two, and an usher told me the arena is expecting 15,000 tonight. For the record, the VGK announced attendance at 17,542.
The Knights’ Daniil Miromanov scored twice, Alec Martinez notched a goal in the second period, while William Karlsson scored seconds into period three.
Laurent Brossoit picked up the shutout, stopping 38 shots. Final: Knights 4 Kings 0.
