BILLINGS — The Las Vegas Golden Knights are on their VGK Road Trip, which provides hockey clinics and fan meet-ups to cities in their television viewing area. Billings was one of those stops. On Saturday morning, the organization stopped at the Centennial Ice Arena for a free clinic put on by a former NHL player and at the Billings Public Library for a book reading to children.
Hockey has been a fast-growing sport in Billings, and it is also large in part due to the NHL team's recent addition to the league in 2017 and rapid playoff success, gaining a large local following. That following grew even more after the team won the Stanley Cup final in 2023.
"I always think it's great that as much as we love the Vegas market, the Golden Knights are really a worldwide brand now, and we try to get out of that, I call it the Vegas bubble, to the outlying areas and getting to Billings is all part of it,” said Dave Goucher, the team's television play-by-play announcer that is traveling with the tour.
The Golden Knights travel from Jackson Hole, Wyoming, to Billings, Montana, Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, Boise, Idaho, and ending in Neno, Nevada. Twenty different members of the organization, like staff, coaches, cheerleaders, and even mascot Chance, get to travel on the nine-day tour.
The clinic was held for skaters ages 5 to 12 from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. While the clinic was full, the event was also open to the public to meet the crew.
Deryk Engelland is a retired NHL player who now travels with the VGK Road Trip to assist with the on-ice clinics. The Canadian defenseman played for the Pittsburgh Penguins for five seasons, the Calgary Flames for three, and eventually played for the Golden Knights for three seasons before retiring in 2020. Billings was the only stop on the tour that he participated in and was excited to see the reaction of young players from Montana.
“To give back to the fans, and to send different towns, not just Nevada, it means a lot. And to see the kids out here, how much fun they have and how good. Like for learn to play, everyone skates really well out here so far. They were going through my legs and I was a little worried at first, but they're nailing it," said Engelland.
Aine Cavan attended the clinic and has been playing hockey for three years.
“It's been really fun, and I think having the team helps because teamwork is basically the point of the game,” said Cavan. "My brother was going to start hockey, but I wasn't. Then once I stepped on the ice, I started skating, and then after I told my dad, I had to play hockey.”
Cavan and other kids at the camp were eager to have this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to skills learn from professionals in the sport that they love.
“It's fun. You can make more friends,” said player Taedon Olthoff. “You don't really get to be around those guys, so just enjoy the moment.”
“If you get scored on, just get right back up and learn from those mistakes,” said another player Cohen Wald. "It's just cool to meet NHL players."
For those not on the ice, the Knights crew also made a stop at the public library for a book reading and signing of “It Hurts to Win” written about their championship. The book's co-author Gordon Weigers signed copies of the book, which were given out for free. Families that attended also got their pictures taken with the cheerleaders, Chance, and Goucher.
“There's a lot more to it than just the success on the ice. They wanted to roll the game, this game that we all love so much, and part of that is making trips like this and trying to get the kids, when they're still young, to get them involved, which is a huge part of it," said Goucher.
For Engelland and the rest of the crew, this tour signifies Vegas's lasting impact on hockey and the youth involved in the sport.
“It gives places like Billings or other places that don't have an NHL team someone to jump on and call their own team. It's a great job by them and it's a lot of fun coming up there,” said Engelland. "It brings me back to (my) childhood being a rink like this. It's a little nicer than some of the ones I grew up playing in, but it's very similar, so it's awesome to be back."
Now having met a professional they can look up to, it will certainly leave a strong impression on these young players.
“When I touch the ice, it feels like I belong there,” said Cavan.
MTN is the television home of the Vegas Golden Knights games. Catch games on our MTN channel, which can be found over the air at 2-2. Their season kicks off Sunday, October 9 with a game against the Colorado Avalanche.
