Every once in a blue moon a member of the media knocks it out of the park with an article on hockey. Usually the reason for this is because the writer spends extra time researching their topic rather than simply writing down a bunch of lazy single-Google-search “facts.” This was exactly the case with an article titled “The NHL is coming to Las Vegas because America is now a casino nation” by David G. Schwartz which appeared in the Washington Post.

It should come as little surprise to anyone who reads the article that Schwartz just so happens to be a professor at UNLV and is the director of the Center for Gaming Research. In other words, this isn’t your average Joe (or Nate) waxing poetic about the city we all love.

We accept that big-league sports are deeply woven into the fabric of the United States. And we are just starting to realize that big-league gambling is now, too. -David G. Schwartz, Washington Post

The whole “gambling is taboo” deal is a thing of the past. Lotteries, casinos, and OTB’s are everywhere in this country. The fact of the matter is there’s simply nothing wrong with it as long as it’s controlled.

Gambling got a bad rap because of the thugs that ran the operation way back in the early days of Las Vegas history. When they said they’d break your arm if you don’t pay up, they weren’t kidding. Heck, your family wasn’t safe either. Those days are over, and gambling has turned into a big time business for a lot of places, Las Vegas still being the king.

But it’s the overreaching point of Schwartz’s article that needs to be reiterated by anyone and everyone who are willing to listen.

When push comes to shove, governments will gladly endorse gambling if it means adding something to the bottom line. It is not surprising that professional sports teams, in many ways a microcosm of the social, political, and economic games that define American life, are following suit. In that light, seeing a team lace up with skates in Las Vegas is not surprising at all.

Las Vegas will attract eyeballs all over the world to the game of hockey. Thus, Las Vegas will help the sport of hockey grow. Thus thus, Las Vegas will make the NHL money!

Enough with the gambling is bad arguments. Down with the no one lives in Vegas garbage. And to hell with crap about distractions.

Las Vegas is a part of the NHL now. It’s good business for everybody involved. And if we have it our way, in the immortal words of Conor McGregor, “we’re not here to take part, we’re here to take over!“