Winston Wolf
Registered User
I have to admit that I didn't go to many Wranglers' games or even follow them much, even if I was a die hard hockey fan. After attending many NHL and Thunder games, the ECHL games just really didn't come close to grabbing my attention.
The Thunder, on the other hand, were fantastic! For me, that's the best sporting event that Las Vegas has held long term. Bob Strumm really did a fantastic job bringing in high profile players to create a buzz around Vegas. I honestly don't think there's many guys that went through Vegas that I didn't meet. Not many IHL teams could say they had guys like Curtis Joseph, Yashin, Demitra, Bonk, Nedved, and many others playing for their team. Not just those guys, but anyone that had some semblance of fame from Bryan Fogarty to Brent Gretzky was brought in. Beyond those guys, we had some real characters. Darcy "Chainsaw" Loewen, Patrice Lefebvre, Ruslan Salei (RIP), Sasha Lakovic (nearly 500 PIM in like 60 games), Pokey Reddick, Clint Malarchuk, and even Manon Rheaume (although she was a b****). Heck, every single one of those guys played in the NHL, too.
I vividly remember meeting Bonk several times. There was a certain trading card, "The Bonk Files" that he said he wasn't allowed to sign. I probably tried like 5 different times before giving up. I also remember the time when CuJo and Yashin played. Those guys were both big deals at the time and considered real deal NHL superstars; there was definite excitement even if they weren't going to be staying long.
Malarchuk, Lefebvre, and Quinney were all around the organization for a while and really great guys and good ambassadors of the game to Vegas. Obviously they were only there for six seasons, but most of the naysayers probably aren't aware they ever existed or had a loyal following. They folded after six seasons, but that had more to do with the IHL itself rather than lack of interest and Las Vegas has grown a hell of a lot in the meantime.
Anyways, I'm pretty damn excited to see real hockey in Vegas again!
Edit: I also remember an autograph event with Jagr where he made everyone wait about 4 hours for his scheduled appearance, before finally showing up and signing autographs for like $50 a pop (this was a long time ago, that was a lot of money!) The excuse given to the crowd was that he was depressed from losing so much gambling.
The Thunder, on the other hand, were fantastic! For me, that's the best sporting event that Las Vegas has held long term. Bob Strumm really did a fantastic job bringing in high profile players to create a buzz around Vegas. I honestly don't think there's many guys that went through Vegas that I didn't meet. Not many IHL teams could say they had guys like Curtis Joseph, Yashin, Demitra, Bonk, Nedved, and many others playing for their team. Not just those guys, but anyone that had some semblance of fame from Bryan Fogarty to Brent Gretzky was brought in. Beyond those guys, we had some real characters. Darcy "Chainsaw" Loewen, Patrice Lefebvre, Ruslan Salei (RIP), Sasha Lakovic (nearly 500 PIM in like 60 games), Pokey Reddick, Clint Malarchuk, and even Manon Rheaume (although she was a b****). Heck, every single one of those guys played in the NHL, too.
I vividly remember meeting Bonk several times. There was a certain trading card, "The Bonk Files" that he said he wasn't allowed to sign. I probably tried like 5 different times before giving up. I also remember the time when CuJo and Yashin played. Those guys were both big deals at the time and considered real deal NHL superstars; there was definite excitement even if they weren't going to be staying long.
Malarchuk, Lefebvre, and Quinney were all around the organization for a while and really great guys and good ambassadors of the game to Vegas. Obviously they were only there for six seasons, but most of the naysayers probably aren't aware they ever existed or had a loyal following. They folded after six seasons, but that had more to do with the IHL itself rather than lack of interest and Las Vegas has grown a hell of a lot in the meantime.
Anyways, I'm pretty damn excited to see real hockey in Vegas again!
Edit: I also remember an autograph event with Jagr where he made everyone wait about 4 hours for his scheduled appearance, before finally showing up and signing autographs for like $50 a pop (this was a long time ago, that was a lot of money!) The excuse given to the crowd was that he was depressed from losing so much gambling.
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