Late this afternoon the Las Vegas hockey team sent out an invitation to all season ticket holders encouraging them to come down to Toshiba Plaza on November 22nd. But you already knew that. It’s the color scheme in that email that is the interesting point.
Now, let’s make it abundantly clear before I share it with you. I do not know for a fact that the color scheme in the email is the actual color scheme. But let’s put it this way, it certainly fits the prior description.
Well as I’ve said it will have some desert influences. Because it’s Knights, there’s obviously going to be some steel grey somewhere. Probably have some gold because that makes sense, and most teams have black. -The Creator
Ok, so now let’s take a look at that email.
See that red? That desert looking gold? The grey lettering in “Don’t Miss Out!”? Here, let me zoom it in.
Here we go again. Two months ago, NHL owners met for another round of the Board of Governors and their newest colleague, The Creator, was not invited. The reason given was because the final payments had yet to be made, so he was not technically an owner yet.
Well, they’ve finally put a name on this ridiculousness calling it, “franchise rights” and now it’s affecting GM George McPhee.
Noticeably absent from the GMs meeting was Las Vegas GM George McPhee. The Vegas expansion team doesn’t yet have “franchise rights” until their transaction to enter the league officially closes, which is expected sometime in the spring. In other words, not until their final payment on that $500 million expansion fee is made. –Pierre LeBrun, ESPN
Earlier this month we heard from The Creator himself on Sportsbook Radio saying he’s planning on “accelerating the payment” which should come before the March GM meetings. But he also mentioned something else that really shouldn’t go unnoticed.
Newly hired Nehme Abouzeid joined me on KXNT Newstalk 840 AM. Abouzeid talks about the event on the 22nd, his expectations for the new franchise, and the challenges of being the “newest headliner on the Strip.”
Ken and Jason jump back into the studio at The Space LV two days after the election. Like most conversations people are having this week, hockey talk comes eventually. Hosted by Ken Boehlke and Jason Pothier.
Ken’s terribly poor neighborly snafu.
The risk reward of Trump becoming the president.
Strategic timing, one day the Vegas organization may learn.
Why show up to the team name unveil event?
Can’t miss events in sports.
The mystique of Conor McGregor and why Ken’s so amped for UFC 205.
Here at SinBin.vegas and across the hockey media world much of the focus of the new Las Vegas franchise has been on the Expansion Draft. But the draft three days later might be the one that’ll be tougher for Vegas to prepare for, and definitely will have the longest term impact on the future of the budding organization.
It’s seems counterintuitive that the draft almost every member on the staff has been through will be tougher to prepare for than the one that’s new. But it makes more sense when you consider the staffs in place to deal with each draft.
On the Expansion Draft side, in addition to the big Mc’s at the helm, McPhee and McCrimmon, you have a collection of professional scouts, a capologist, and a guy who created a website tool specifically focused on the Expansion Draft. The important part of this staff is, not a single one of them have gone through this process before. There are no preconceived notions, there are no prior successes, and there’s not a single guy in the room with a cynical thought stemming from a disastrous moment in their hockey past.
So now flip over to the amateur draft side of things. Once again we’ve got Team McMc in charge, with Scott Luce and his staff of six amateur scouts doing the grunt work.
Now that you are done voting for the two worst candidates in the history of the United States Presidency, it’s time to do your real civic duty. It’s the Las Vegas Hockey Fan Ballot. All polls are being conducted on Twitter, but if you don’t have Twitter, what’s wrong with you? use the comments section to cast your vote.
All write-in votes will be shown below each poll when voting is over, so be sure to check back tomorrow for the results.
Be sure to RT the “I VOTED” badge when you’ve punched your vote on all 10 questions.
Write-Ins: Sin City Superman by Flooding (@rngrfan01), Ding Ding Ding from Slot Machines (@ShopDeVegas and @keithfries), Customized Song from Five Finger Death Punch (@symracer13), Luck Be a Lady by Frank Sinatra (@RyanTerrana)
QUESTION 3 – What should we nickname T-Mobile Arena?
As was first reported by SinBin.vegas, the official announcement of the team name and logo for the Las Vegas NHL franchise will be on November 22nd at 5:30 PM on Toshiba Plaza outside of T-Mobile Arena.
The Las Vegas NHL franchise will unveil the team name and logo at an exciting event, which is open to the public. All fans are encouraged to join us for this big announcement. -Press Release
Contrary to prior belief however, jerseys will not be shown off at this event, just the adjective that will precede Knights, the color scheme, and at least one logo. The current plan on jerseys is to show them off them in June and have them for sale either on the date of unveil or shortly thereafter.
Jerseys probably won’t happen until the Expansion Draft. We have to be very careful regarding counterfeiting until we actually have product. The counterfeiters can actually produce product faster than we can. -The Creator
As for the 22nd, shirts and hats will be available for sale with the brand new name and logo. Oh, and SinBin.vegas has a new shirt too.
A press release was just sent out announcing the hiring of Nehme Abouzeid (we’ll figure out how to actually say that later), as a Senior Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer for the Las Vegas Something Knights.
Abouzeid was most recently the Executive Director of Brand Marketing, Advertising, and Entertainment Marketing for Wynn Las Vegas. Prior to that he spent nine years with Las Vegas Sands Corporation.
Let me put it more bluntly for those who missed my point of the bold words in the last paragraph. Dude is from Las Vegas.
But wait, check this out.
Known as a creative marketer and versatile executive who excels at maximizing revenue across the integrated hospitality enterprise, he has been named to the “Top 40 Under 40” lists of Global Gaming Business Magazine and Vegas Inc., the city’s top business journal. -Press Release
He has an extensive knowledge of the sports industry, a wealth of experience marketing a world-class brand and, as a long-time Las Vegas resident, he knows our city and our community. This is definitely a combination that will support the long-term success of our franchise. -Kerry Bubolz, Las Vegas Hockey President
All joking/back patting/bragging/pumping up our ego/dominating the Vegas hockey blogging game, aside, Abouzeid truly does appear to be an absolutely brilliant hire. He’s a guy that knows Las Vegas, knows how to market to locals and tourists alike, and truly understands what it takes to be noticed, and stay noticed, on the Las Vegas Strip. We’re pumped to see what he has in store for this organization.
Losing sucks. It’s a lesson we’ve all learned whether playing, watching, or betting on sports. And the worst part, there’s no avoiding it. In Major League Sports about 3% of teams win the ultimate prize. College is even worse with 0.7% winning in football and 0.3% in basketball.
Even the biggest bandwagon fan in the world will experience heart arch more often than jubilation. It’s fact of sports, and as a fan, it’s kind of the worst part.
But I have some good news. The Las Vegas NHL Franchise has NEVER lost. And, that streak will continue for at least another 11 months.
Can’t lose if you don’t play though, right? But, that doesn’t mean you can’t still follow the team and experience the “wins” along the way, all with the benefit of knowing, they’ll never lose.
Expansion franchises don’t come along too often in professional sports. Vegas is the third expansion team in the four major sports in the last 15 years. Very rarely, if ever for most sports fans, do you get to watch the actual formation of a team you plan on cheering on for the rest of your life.
Think about this, since June 22nd, when Gary Bettman delivered Las Vegas the best news the city has ever been given, it’s been nothing but positive. Hired a general manager, awesome! The Assistant GM appears to be a diamond in the rough, nailed it! Team name and logo on November 22nd. Minor league affiliate in December. Jerseys sometime after. Players. Draft picks. Head coach. They are all going to viewed under a positive light.
