The Golden Squires?

The image to the left of Bill Foley, owner of the Vegas Golden Knights, in Henderson to announce a new arena for the area for the purpose of moving an AHL team to Henderson was taken on February 13, 2020. There were still hurdles that they had to overcome, but it was pretty clear that the purchase of the San Antonio Rampage franchise by the Golden Knights all but assured them of moving the AHL team to Nevada. While there were protests over the building of the new arena in Henderson, the vote on the matter by Henderson city council was scheduled for today. Would we see the baby Knights in Henderson or would this be yet another hurdle for to overcome?

The comment period over the matter of the new arena that was proposed for the site of the Henderson Pavilion at the intersection of Paseo Verde and Green Valley parkways lasted for over 90 minutes. This idea of having AHL hockey played in a 6000-seat arena in Henderson has its supporters and its detractors. However, once the comment period closed, it was entirely up to the city council to decide where to push forward with the project.

Henderson city council voted 4-1 in favour of the new arena, paving the way for AHL hockey and the Golden Knights' AHL affiliate to set up shop in Henderson, Nevada. With the project now greenlit, the new arena can be constructed. It's expected that the AHL team will play in Orleans Arena until the new Henderson facility is ready.

Vegas Golden Knights president Kerry Bubolz told Blake Apgar of the Las Vegas Review-Journal on February 13 "that the AHL team has more than 5,300 ticket deposits" which, to me, is rather hard to believe considering that the Golden Knights purchased the team just one week earlier. It's entirely plausible that this did happen, though, so it seems the junior Knights might play in front of a full house for at least one season in Henderson.

Also mentioned in Apgar's article was a potential name for the AHL club which, if it plays out, could be the Henderson Silver Knights. As per Apgar's article on February 7, "Knights majority owner Bill Foley confirmed his group submitted a trademark application to keep the Silver Knights name as an option for the team". Personally, I'm not a fan of the gold-silver imagery being used here as it would give the AHL franchise a "second-best" feel, but Silver Knights would fit the theme.

I was kind of hoping for the "Golden Squires" since squires were the apprentices of knights. Just as squires learned to be knights, the Golden Squires would one day learn how to be Golden Knights, fitting into the AHL's developmental theme where the next NHL stars are produced. Maybe I'm overthinking this, but that makes more sense than the "Silver Knights" to me.

Whatever name they ultimately choose, it is now official with the vote today that the Henderson AHL team now has an AHL-suitable arena to play in whenever they hit the ice in Nevada's second-largest city. While they'll call Orleans Arena home in the meantime, the Henderson AHL team is one step closer to calling Henderson home.

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!