VEGAS (October 7, 2019) - Vegas Golden Knights President Kerry Bubolz announced today, October 7, the third season of VGK University presented by City National Bank, an initiative to give local fans a unique opportunity to learn the ins-and-outs of the game of hockey from Vegas Golden Knights hockey operations executives.
VGK University presented by City National Bank will take place on Vegas Golden Knights game days, and feature hockey classroom/hot stove sessions including an introduction to the game, offensive and defensive strategies, special teams and coaching and management preparation. All sessions will be led by Vegas Golden Knights Director of Hockey Operations Misha Donskov and TV Color Analyst Shane Hnidy in a personal environment.
In addition, VGK University will have optional skates at T-Mobile Arena before the classroom sessions, including introductory hockey skill instruction from Donskov & Hnidy. Skate rentals will be provided.
VGK University Presented By City National Bank Returns For Third Season
A complete schedule can be found below. Current VGK season ticket members will receive an email with enrollment instructions. The general public can enroll by visiting
this link
.
All sessions will be tailored to fans with beginner-level knowledge of hockey and capped at a 50-person capacity. Attendees must be 21 years or older to participate.
Fans can purchase individual or multiple sessions from the five games available. Packages run $279 per person per game including a game ticket, or $149 per person per game for Vegas Golden Knights members with their own game ticket. A portion of every package will be donated to the Vegas Golden Knights Foundation.
All fans participating in VGK University presented by City National Bank are required to have a ticket to the day's game for entry. Exit and reentry into the arena is not permitted. VGK University packages are available exclusively to fans in the Golden Knights broadcast market.
Sunday, October 27, 2019 (T-Mobile Arena, Las Vegas, NV)
-Open skate/Hockey Instruction, 1-2 p.m. PT
-Classroom Session: Intro to Hockey, 2:30-3:30 p.m. PT
-Vegas Golden Knights vs. Anaheim Ducks, 5 p.m. PT
Wednesday, November 13, 2019 (T-Mobile Arena, Las Vegas, NV)
-Open skate/Hockey Instruction, 3-4 p.m. PT
-Classroom Session: Creating Offense, 4:30-5:30 p.m. PT
-Vegas Golden Knights vs. Chicago Blackhawks, 7 p.m. PT
Tuesday, November 19, 2019 (T-Mobile Arena, Las Vegas, NV)
-Open skate/Hockey Instruction, 3-4 p.m. PT
-Classroom Session: Defensive Strategy, 4:30-5:30p.m. PT
-Vegas Golden Knights vs. Toronto Maple Leafs, 7 p.m. PT
Sunday, December 8, 2019 (T-Mobile Arena, Las Vegas, NV)
-Open skate/Hockey Instruction, 12-1 p.m. PT
-Classroom Session: Special Teams, 1:30-2:30 p.m. PT
-Vegas Golden Knights vs. New York Rangers, 4 p.m. PT
Tuesday, December 17, 2019 (T-Mobile Arena, Las Vegas, NV)
-Open skate/Hockey Instruction, 3-4 p.m. PT
-Classroom Session: Coach & Management Preparation/Hot Stove with Misha & Shane, 4:30-5:30 p.m. PT
-Vegas Golden Knights vs. Minnesota Wild, 7 p.m. PT
VGK UNIVERSITY INSTRUCTORS: Misha Donskov
Donskov joined the Golden Knights in August 2016 after serving as Manager of Hockey Operations/Analytics & Video for Hockey Canada's Men's National Teams. During his time with Hockey Canada, Misha won a gold medal at the 2016 World Cup of Hockey in Toronto, serving as an Assistant Coach on Mike Babcock's staff. In addition, Donskov won gold medals with Canada at the 2016 IIHF World Championship in Russia, the 2015 IIHF World Championship in the Czech Republic, the 2015 IIHF World Junior Championship in Toronto and Montreal and with the 2013 Under-18 Team at the Ivan Hlinka Memorial Tournament in the Czech Republic and Slovakia. He won a bronze medal with Canada's National Men's Under-18 Team at the 2014 IIHF U18 World Championship in Finland. Donskov also served on Canada's coaching staff for the Canada-Russia Challenge, CHL Subway Series and Deutschland Cup.
Prior to his work with Hockey Canada, he was Associate Coach with the Ontario Hockey League's Ottawa 67's from 2012-14, and spent three seasons with the London Knights. With the Knights, he served as Assistant General Manager and Assistant Coach, winning an Ontario Hockey League championship in 2012.
In 2011, Donskov won a gold medal with the U.S. Women's National Team in Zurich, Switzerland serving as player development coach and advanced scout. Donskov also spent eight years working with the NHL's Columbus Blue Jackets and Atlanta Thrashers organizations within hockey development, community development, fan development, marketing and hockey operations.
Before pursuing a career in hockey, Donskov spent six years with Cardinal Health, a Fortune 500 healthcare services company. He played hockey at the junior, university, and semi-professional level in Canada, United States, Sweden and Norway. Donskov holds a master's degree in kinesiology with a specialization in coaching education from the University of Western Ontario, as well as an undergraduate degree in business administration/finance from Miami (Ohio) University.
Shane Hnidy
Hnidy is in his third season of providing color commentary on the Golden Knights television airwaves. He was previously part of the Winnipeg Jets broadcast team from 2011-17. He was the color commentator alongside Dennis Beyak on TSN Television, as well as a part of the broadcast team on TSN Radio 1290, and handled in-studio pre-game and game recaps for TSN. Hnidy also serves as an analyst on numerous NBCSN broadcasts.
The Neepawa, Manitoba native played in the NHL from 2000-2011, playing for the Ottawa Senators, Nashville Predators, Atlanta Thrashers, Anaheim Ducks, Boston Bruins and Minnesota Wild. He was drafted in the 7th round (173rd overall) in the 1994 NHL Entry Draft by the Buffalo Sabres. As a defenseman, he played in 550 NHL games during his career, registering 16 goals and 55 assists for a total of 71 points with 633 penalty minutes.
Hnidy was a member of Atlanta's and Nashville's inaugural playoff appearances. In addition, he was a member of the Bruins' 2011 Stanley Cup championship team. He officially retired on August 21, 2011.
He joined TSN 1290 in September of 2011 as a radio analyst for the Jets and went on to become the full-time Winnipeg Jets Television color analyst for TSN in 2014. While with TSN, he served as an analyst covering the 2013 IIHF World Junior Championship and the Men's World Hockey Championships for the last four years.
ABOUT THE VEGAS GOLDEN KNIGHTS
The Vegas Golden Knights are a National Hockey League franchise owned and operated by Black Knight Sports and Entertainment LLC. The Vegas Golden Knights were established by founding partners William Foley and his family and the Maloof family. For the latest news and information on the Golden Knights visit
vegasgoldenknights.com
. Fans can follow the team on
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ABOUT CITY NATIONAL
With $56.2 billion in assets, City National Bank provides banking, investment and trust services through 70 offices, including 19 full-service regional centers, in Southern California, the San Francisco Bay Area, Nevada, New York City, Nashville, Atlanta, Minneapolis and Washington, D.C. In addition, the company and its investment affiliates manage or administer $78.0 billion in client investment assets.
City National is a subsidiary of Royal Bank of Canada (RBC), one of North America's leading diversified financial services companies. RBC serves more than 16 million personal, business, public sector and institutional clients through offices in Canada, the United States and 34 other countries.
For more information about City National, visit the company's website at
cnb.com
.
