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Vegas NHL Franchise Name Announced; Negreanu Comments on His Role
- Updated: November 25, 2016
As the National Hockey League announced the name of its new Las Vegas franchise on Tuesday, the Golden Knights, certainly no one was happier than professional poker player and hockey nut Daniel Negreanu.
Sponsored by online poker site PokerStars, Negreanu is the most successful player in poker history with more than $32 million in tournament winnings, six World Series of Poker bracelets and two World Poker Tour titles.
Now a resident of Las Vegas, Negreanu grew up in Toronto and is a huge Maple Leafs fan. As a boy, he cried after losses and played street hockey until dark almost every day after school. “Kid Poker,” his nickname in the card-playing world, even offers up his playoff wagers on his Twitter feed.
When team owner Bill Foley launched his efforts to land an NHL franchise in Sin City, Negreanu was a natural to help lead the charge – helping launch a ticket drive and promoting the team at every opportunity.
Initially, reports even had Negreanu as a potential minority investor in the team, which will play in the new T-Mobile Arena, which can seat 17,500 fans for hockey. The ticket effort eventually reached the group’s goal of 10,000 season tickets and NHL commissioner Gary Bettman officially awarded the franchise to Sin City in June.
When the franchise begins play next season, Negreanu believes Vegas has one strength other cities may not have: a thriving tourism industry. Many hockey fans will schedule trips to coincide with their hometown team’s road game in Vegas, he says, a quick trip for some gambling and hockey fun.
After the announcement, Negreanu was quick to tweet his excitement about the Golden Knights taking the ice.
PokerNews recently caught up with Negreanu at the …
