What can Utah Hockey Club learn from the Vegas Golden Knights’ expansion success?

Las Vegas • As Utah Hockey Club players warmed up on Saturday night, images of giant flames consumed the ice at T-Mobile Arena.

A booming voice let the thousands of fans know, “It’s Knight Time!”

The Vegas Golden Knights have had a strong, flashy brand from their inception. From the glittery jerseys, pregame performances, showgirls and theatrical in-game experiences, going to an NHL game feels like an extension of the Vegas Strip.

“The games here do showmanship from start to finish, even during intermissions. They get everyone involved,” said Vegas resident Heather Payrot.

Less than a decade after joining the NHL as an expansion franchise, the Vegas Golden Knights have a clear identity and one of the league’s most rabid fan bases.

The Utah Hockey Club is still in the process of building a brand and audience, but the Golden Knights have shown it doesn’t take generations to generate loyalty.

“It’s awesome to see teams come into the league and the response from the fanbase and the culture that’s built within those teams,” Utah forward Nick Bjugstad said. “We definitely want to be something like that as well, and make a name for ourselves right away. We don’t want to ease into it. It’s an honor to be part of the inaugural year of Utah Hockey Club. We take pride in that.”

A tragic beginning

Less than 10 years ago, Las Vegas did not have an NHL team.

Like Utah Hockey Club, the Golden Knights were a new franchise in a new market, trying to create a culture and a connection with their fan base.

The hype surrounding Utah’s entrance into the league, though, took a different form ahead of Vegas’ first season in 2017-18.

Nine days before the Golden Knights opened their inaugural campaign at T-Mobile Arena, tragedy struck Las Vegas. A gunman opened fire from his hotel room above a country music festival, killing 58 people and injuring hundreds.

Vegas, suddenly, was bonded with its community in the worst way imaginable.

“They did a really good job of fostering that team spirit. The community really felt like it had somebody to bond with and ride those highs and lows with,” said Caitlin Danies, who is from Elko, Nevada. “Unfortunately, a lot of that was rooted in the shooting that happened down here.”

The Golden Knights played with the motto “Vegas Strong” from thereon, and worked to give the fans an escape from the outside world. Vegas earned its first-ever win on Oct. 10 with a 5-2 performance over the Arizona Coyotes — now, Utah Hockey Club.

Misfits win early

Still, the Golden Knights forged a path to the Stanley Cup Final in their inaugural season where they ultimately lost in five games to the Washington Capitals.

“I think they really immersed themselves into the community and made this such a bright and exciting place to be to kind of get away from your worries and just have fun watching hockey for a few hours,” Danies said.

Vegas’ run to the finals that year was improbable for many reasons, but namely, the team had not played together before that season. While Utah was relocated from Arizona with its same roster, Vegas was an expansion team.

When a team is added to the NHL, every organization submits a list of protected players. That list can either include seven forwards, three defensemen and one goaltender, or eight skaters (forwards or defensemen) and one goaltender. In June 2017, the Golden Knights made their NHL Expansion Draft selections.

Vegas selected one player from the available people on each existing roster around the league to form its inaugural team. The fan base embraced the so-called “unwanted” players and gave them their “misfits” nickname.

“We stand by the misfits. Especially the original guys that came here,” said Vegas resident Eric Hart. “We believe that’s what made us so special. It was a bunch of guys that nobody wanted from their teams and they came here and almost won the Stanley Cup their first year.”

After falling short of the championship in 2018, the Golden Knights won it all against the Florida Panthers in 2023; the franchise’s sixth year of existence. There were six “misfits” on the Stanley Cup-winning squad: William Karlsson, Reilly Smith, Jonathan Marchessault, Shea Theodore and Brayden McNabb.

The Golden Knights were the first professional sports organization to arrive in Las Vegas. The WNBA’s Aces were relocated in 2018 as were the NFL’s Raiders in 2020.

Developing community

The early winning culture no doubt helped fans get invested in the team and the sport.

But it was more than that.

It’s about community.

Before Saturday’s game between Utah and Vegas, Payrot got her face painted for free outside of T-Mobile Arena. She said it’s one example of how the organization has worked to make the fans feel part of the Golden Knights community.

Danies, who grew up in Boise, Idaho, was also excited about Utah being in the league. She said she “would’ve loved” to have an NHL team in Salt Lake to follow as her fandom for the sport grew when she was younger. Danies’ niece lives in Boise and now has her own professional team to cheer on in the Utah Hockey Club. They’re taking her to a game in February.

“Good luck, enjoy it, support them. They’ll only get better,” Danies said as a message to Utah fans. “Really ride that high of being new, being exciting.”

It is not missed by the Hockey Club players that they have a unique opportunity to carve the narrative of Utah’s first season — one that will be looked back on in the NHL history books for years to come.

Expansion team or not, Utah has a fresh start, new ownership and an energized audience to build something special in Salt Lake.

“Utah is a brand new team, and they’re going to find their way. I actually welcome Utah to the hockey league,” Hart said. “I liked the Arizona Coyotes, so to see they’re doing well this year — the Utah team — and seeing that they have a franchise that really embraces them and respects them. It’s what they deserve.”

Payrot agreed.

“I think it’s just going to keep growing as it goes on,” she said.