The Name Doesn't Work

When the ECHL announced that the new Tahoe expansion franchise was debuting its team name and logo on Thursday, there was some general buzz of excitement at HBIC Headquarters. The Tahoe franchise could go in a number of directions and use all sorts of imagery in its identity, but one had to figure that the lake that Tahoe is situated on would be included in team's identity. As you can see above, the legend of a monster from the lake jumped to the front of the line when it comes to name, but there's one word that doesn't fit into the team name whatsoever. Folks, say hello to the ECHL's newest team in the Tahoe Knight Monsters!

If that name sounds awkward to say, you're not alone. Fantastical names like "monsters" and "leprechauns" usually don't need additional adjectives to make them more whimsical. The Lowell Lock Monsters, for example, used the additional word "Lock" because it's specific to Lowell in their system of locks and canals in and around the city. That one makes sense as it's very specific.

So what's a "knight monster", you ask? Well, according to the press release, "The Knight Monster is unique and iconic, blending the mystique and honor of a Knight with the ferocity of a lake monster creating a distinct visual identity for the team. This Knight Monster is majestic and fierce with a towering presence. The Knight Monster is a protector and fights for those who can't fight for themselves."

In other words, this is all just marketing horse manure to take a Lake Tahoe legend and combine it with knight imagery. A "knight monster" is the same as a team naming itself the "warrior shoppers" or the "samurai airplanes" in that none of those words go together in any logical form, but the Tahoe ECHL franchise intends on skating as the Knight Monsters next season in front of their fans. While I get that the AHL's Cleveland Monsters have a bit of a hold on the "monsters" name in hockey, the Tahoe Tessies - a name that was highly popular in the fan polling - could have been used with the same logo.

Fan response has been icy for the name of team, and it's not hard to see why that is. There were other options that may have worked just as well - Nightmares, Dragons, SnowKats - but we're being subjected to "Knight Monsters" because intelligent creativity simply no longer exists. The team has already lifted the Lake Tahoe Visitors Authority's slogan of "Awe and then Some" and made it their own, and it seems that there have been few objections over the stupidity of the name outside of the Tahoe fanbase who have made their dislike of the name clear on social media.

Back to the marketing, who exactly is this Knight Monster protecting? Who cannot fight for themselves where a whimsical, poorly-named monster has to step in and defend those people? The Knight Monsters aren't some superhero gang; they're hockey players representing a city in Nevada. Are they saying their fans "can't fight for themselves"?

Honestly, this is some of the worst marketing I've ever seen in hockey. From the ridiculously bad team name to the rationale for the team name, one couldn't do much worse than what the Knight Monsters have done so far. The fans in the region have rejected the name, it seems the hockey world is following suit, and it's almost like the owners of the Knight Monsters - Tim Tebow and David Hodges - simply don't care what the community of Tahoe wants and are instead forging ahead with the name. I get they own the team, but are you really doing yourself any favours if people aren't willing to support the Knight Monsters?

The best thing that can happen is that I'm completely wrong and this team sells out its rink, all of the merchandise they make, and hockey in the Lake Tahoe region becomes the biggest thing since sliced bread. ECHL hockey on the western front needs another anchor like the Idaho Steelheads have become, and Tahoe could be it. It seems unlikely at this point, but the ECHL really needs its footprint on western North America if its going to be a 1-to-1 ratio with AHL and NHL affiliations.

Unfortunately, it seems the Knight Monsters may be a hard sell to local fans in the Tahoe area thanks to a name no one wanted, and it may be even harder to gain fans in other markets since there's zero relation to anything Knight Monsters. Normally, there's excitement over new teams no matter where they're situated, but this one seems hard to get behind because, as asked before, what the hell is a Knight Monster and why are they in Tahoe?

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!