Fireworks light up the sky during a ceremony to unveil the Las Vegas NHL expansion franchise’s official team nickname, the Golden Knights, on Tuesday, Nov. 22, 2016, at Toshiba Plaza in Las Vegas. (Benjamin Hager/Las Vegas Review-Journal)
Fans purchase official Golden Knights merchandise at the conclusion of a ceremony to unveil the Las Vegas NHL expansion franchise’s official team nickname, logos and colors on Tuesday, Nov. 22, 2016, at Toshiba Plaza in Las Vegas. (Benjamin Hager/Las Vegas Review-Journal)
Fans purchase official Golden Knights merchandise at the conclusion of a ceremony to unveil the Las Vegas NHL expansion franchise’s official team nickname, logos and colors on Tuesday, Nov. 22, 2016, at Toshiba Plaza in Las Vegas. (Benjamin Hager/Las Vegas Review-Journal)
Golden Knights owner Bill Foley, right, celebrates at the conclusion of a ceremony to unveil the Las Vegas NHL expansion franchise’s official team nickname, logos and colors on Tuesday, Nov. 22, 2016, at Toshiba Plaza in Las Vegas. (Benjamin Hager/Las Vegas Review-Journal)
A Cirque du Soleil performer dances during a ceremony to unveil the Las Vegas NHL expansion franchise’s official team nickname, logos and colors on Tuesday, Nov. 22, 2016, at Toshiba Plaza in Las Vegas. (Benjamin Hager/Las Vegas Review-Journal)
Official Vegas Golden Knights gear is thrown to the crowd during a ceremony to unveil the Las Vegas NHL expansion franchise’s official team nickname, logos and colors on Tuesday, Nov. 22, 2016, at Toshiba Plaza in Las Vegas. (Benjamin Hager/Las Vegas Review-Journal)
A Cirque du Soleil performer dances during a ceremony to unveil the Las Vegas NHL expansion franchise’s official team nickname, logos and colors on Tuesday, Nov. 22, 2016, at Toshiba Plaza in Las Vegas. (Benjamin Hager/Las Vegas Review-Journal)
Fireworks light up the sky during a ceremony to unveil the Las Vegas NHL expansion franchise’s official team nickname, the Golden Knights, on Tuesday, Nov. 22, 2016, at Toshiba Plaza in Las Vegas. (Benjamin Hager/Las Vegas Review-Journal)
Janice Palmaffy, left, and Jaleen Baumgart celebrate at the conclusion of a ceremony to unveil the Las Vegas NHL expansion franchise’s official team nickname, logos and colors on Tuesday, Nov. 22, 2016, at Toshiba Plaza in Las Vegas. (Benjamin Hager/Las Vegas Review-Journal)
Hannah McKinley plays with gold streamers at the conclusion of a ceremony to unveil the Las Vegas NHL expansion franchise’s official team nickname, logos and colors on Tuesday, Nov. 22, 2016, at Toshiba Plaza in Las Vegas. (Benjamin Hager/Las Vegas Review-Journal)
Before the Raiders and before the Aces and their WNBA championship, Las Vegas was home to only one major league professional sports team: the Vegas Golden Knights.
Six years ago, Knights owner Bill Foley unveiled the name and logo for the then-newest NHL expansion team in Las Vegas.
The team’s name is a nod to Foley’s alma mater, the United States Military Academy, or West Point. The school’s athletic teams are known as the Army Black Knights.
“Knights are the highest element of the warrior class,” Foley said in an announcement video the team released on Nov. 22, 2016. “The concept of a knight who is honorable, who always defends those who cannot defend themselves.”
The team’s colors are a representation of both a knight and the colors of Las Vegas.
The word “Las” was intentionally left off the team name because Foley said locals referred to the city as “Vegas.”
