Pat Sajak, Steve Wynn turn heads at Stanley Cup Final games

Las Vegas Review-Journal

6 years ago

Entertainer Pat Sajak, a Washington Capitals season ticket holder, introduces the players for the Capitals and the Vegas Golden Knights before Game 3 of the NHL hockey Stanley Cup Final, Saturday, June 2, 2018, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

A scene from “Ka” at MGM Grand, in which an audience member played by a Cirque artist wearing a Washington Capitals hat is about to be tossed over the side of the stage. (Cirque du Soliel)

The birdlike puppet from “Mystere” at Treasure Island, operated by the character Moha-Samedi wears a Golden Knights jersey during the show on Wednesday, May 30, 2018. (Cirque du Soleil)

The Vegas Golden Knights logo is shown at Waterfall Atrium at the Venetian, where it will be on display through the end of the Stanley Cup Final. (Las Vegas Sands)

The Kats! Bureau today has been a mobile unit, earlier sweeping through an overheated Toshiba Plaza, a walk to the Tropicana valet (where at least one attendant wore a Golden Knights jersey) and to the Westgate Superbook.

Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Final was played on two big screens, and VGK games have been the featured event in the book since December, when it became evident the team was becoming a phenomenon. Sports book director Jay Kornegay played the audio of Golden Knights’ games, too, a first for NHL games during the regular season.

On the topic of audio, Pat Sajak was booed earlier, at Toshiba Plaza, when he announced the starting lineups at Capital One Arena in Washington. The moment was openly M-O-C-K-E-D on social media, too.

Sajak and “Wheel of Fortune” are actually, and oddly, connected to the Westgate property. In June 2011, following the Daytime Emmy Awards show at the then-Las Vegas Hilton, famed tile-turner Vanna White attended a VIP after-party at the resort’s Sky Villas. She tumbled off a step near the outdoor pool and suffered a bruised arm. As she famously remarked afterward, “I took an S-P-I-L-L.”

The Capitals beat the Knights 3-1 on Saturday. The victory gave the Capitals a 2-1 lead in the best-of-seven series that continues Monday at 5 p.m. in Washington.

Yes, it was him

Lost, or almost, in the record-setting crowd of 18,702 at Game 2 T-Mobile Arena on Wednesday night was ex-Wynn Las Vegas Chief Executive Officer and Chairman Steve Wynn. He attended with his friend and “Bar Rescue” Spike TV series host, Jon Taffer. The two were spotted next to each other in a selfie taken by Fox 5 meteorologist Ted Pretty.

😳 pic.twitter.com/fQ6g2vMd3F

— Ted Pretty (@tedpretty) May 31, 2018

On Friday, Taffer confirmed he did attend the game with Wynn, the second time the two had watched a Golden Knights game at T-Mobile. During a phone chat Friday, Taffer said only that, “We had a great time, everyone was very nice. The only problem was the Golden Knights lost.”

LOVE for VGK

The Golden Knights’ logo can now be viewed by guests at the Waterfall Atrium at The Venetian, just behind the LOVE art installation. The logo is up daily from 3 p.m.-10 a.m. Also, the human statues at St. Mark’s Square are wearing VGK jerseys, the first time the statues have been outfitted in such a way.

Cirque in play

Cirque du Soleil’s productions “Ka” at MGM Grand and “Mystere” at Treasure Island adopted onstage references to the Stanley Cup Final on Wednesday night. At “Ka,” the artist who portrays an audience member who is tossed over the side of stage at the start of the show wore a Capitals cap and T-shirt.

At “Mystere,” the birdlike puppet operated by the character Moha-Samedi wore a VGK jersey, the first time a Cirque character has worn a sports jersey during a performance.

Contact John Katsilometes at jkatsilometes@reviewjournal.com. Follow @johnnykats on Twitter and @JohnnyKats1 on Instagram.