Golden Knights celebrate season at Palms in Las Vegas

Mark Hoppus of Blink-182 spoke for the collective on Friday night. The bassist and singer for the renowned punk band announced the Vegas Golden Knights were in the house at Pearl Concert Theater.

In true punk fashion, Hoppus shouted, “First (expletive) year! In the Stanley Cup Final! Congratulations! They are my team now! And no one can say I’m a bandwagoner because it’s the first year!”

A roar went up. So much for flying under the radar.

The 2017-‘18 Vegas Golden Knights convened for possibly the last time at the Palms on Friday night. The team celebrated the “three stars” of the resort: Dinner at the new Scotch 80s Prime, the Blink-182 show at Pearl, and a late-night hang at the 55th-floor Apex Social Club.

The guys hung with Palms General Manager Jon Gray, one of the team’s avid, high-profile fans, who toasted the squad in the Scotch 80s private dining room.

The team dined on dishes served by well-known Las Vegas Chef Barry Dakake. They toasted from a 15-liter bottle of Moet Chandon, its label a customized Golden Knights logo. The VGK stalwarts who kicked it up: Marc-Andre Fleury, Jonathan Marchessault, Deryk Engelland, Jon Merrill, Shea Theodore, Ryan Reaves, James Neal, Malcolm Subban, Alex Tuch, David Perron, Reilly Smith, Cody Eakin, Pierre-Édouard Bellemare, Tomas Nosek, Brayden McNabb, Will Carrier, Shea Theodore, Will Carrier, Nate Schmidtand Erik Haula.

The team threw back shots of Fire Water cinnamon schnapps and enjoyed a variety of cocktails. Station Casinos co-owner Lorenzo Fertitta swung in to congratulate the players. After the sold-out concert, the crew headed upstairs and closed the night at Apex, the lofty night spot that recently re-opened as a replacement of Ghostbar.

The Golden Knights were happy to chat with well-wishers and pose for photos throughout the night.

Having traveled to see the team play five playoff road games, Gray had befriended a few of the Golden Knights during their groundbreaking season, which ended Thursday with a 4-3 loss to the Washington Capitals in Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Final at T-Mobile Arena.

Engelland, who had dined at Scotch 80 with his wife, Melissa, recently texted Gray on Friday morning and said, “The boys want to come in for dinner. Can you have us?” That’s all the Palms’ brass needed to hear.

The party ensued from there. Gray is in his second tour at the Palms, and was a key adviser to original owner George Maloof in the hotel’s mid-2000s heyday. He returned in March 2017 as the hotel’s general manager under the Station Casinos hierarchy.

Over the years, the stylish and savvy Gray and his team have orchestrated many celeb parties and events. But Friday was really something special.

“I’ve seen a lot at this hotel,” Gray said. “But this might be my favorite night ever at the Palms.”

John Katsilometes’ column runs daily in the A section. Contact him at jkatsilometes@reviewjournal.com. Follow @johnnykats on Twitter, @JohnnyKats1 on Instagram.