Broadcasters Share Favorite VGK Moments

In the midst of the NHL's pause, the Vegas Golden Knights broadcast team has had some time to reflect on some of the best moments since they each started with the organization. Each member of the group recalls different games, moments, conversations and memories that have made their own experience with the club so unique. Put yourself in their shoes as the VGK broadcast team shares some of their top moments from the rink, the road and the airwaves.

Click here to read part one.
Click here to read part two.
SHANE HNIDY: My favorite personal moment came in the first season and first home game following the tragedy of October 1 in Las Vegas. The arena was full of fans, and Deryk Engelland gave his speech to the arena with first responders on the ice with the team. I was new to Las Vegas and to see the city hurting as it was and looking for any type of escape even for a few hours to put a smile on their faces. Enter the Vegas Golden Knights as they were flying from puck drop, scoring the first goal which brought cheering and smiles. It's rare to go from such emotion to such electric energy in those moments but that's what you experienced at that game.
DAVE GOUCHER: Playing on stage in Nashville! Shane set it up through his friend Jordan McCants, who's a regular on the music scene in the city. After some encouragement, I nervously went up and joined Jordan and his bandmate to play "Let Her Cry" by Hootie and the Blowfish. It was a three-chord special (G, C and D), there were probably 30 people in the room, it was nerve-wracking as heck, and an absolute blast!
STORMY BUONANTONY: The best thing I've experienced personally since working with the Golden Knights is actually more of a compilation of moments than any one thing. Change is always difficult and it's meant a lot to me the way that the players, organization and VGK fan base have welcomed and gotten to know me this season. I have especially enjoyed the time on the road with my fellow broadcasters, production and content team members. Those group dinners watching games, coffee runs, bus rides and flights are not only where a lot of our best brainstorms and ideation have come from, but where we've gone from co-workers to friends to family in a very short time.
GARY LAWLESS: Riding the elevator down from the press box to the dressing room level after the team beat Winnipeg in Game 5 to clinch the Western Conference Championship and then walking around the corner and the first person from the team was Kelly McCrimmon. We looked at each and started laughing and embraced in a big hug. It was an incredible day and moment which I'll never forget. We flew back to Vegas and our entire content team gathered at the Chandelier Bar at the Cosmopolitan and shared some food and drinks. We were all in our Western Conference Champions hats and it was a great night.
DAN D'UVA: October 10, 2017 was special for a lot of reasons: Healing from the October 1 tragedy. The first home game for the Golden Knights. Vegas becoming a major league city. Everything was new. Everything was "the first time this, the first time that." For me, it was the realization of a long-held ambition: Work in the NHL. After eight years in the minors, this was the start of my major league career. By October 10, I had called each of the Knights seven preseason games and two regular season road games. But this one - a game at home, a game that counts - made it real for me. Who else would know this feeling? After the game, at a team gathering on the balcony overlooking Toshiba Plaza, I found myself sitting with Dave Goucher. Lucky me. As the crowd thinned and glasses emptied, Dave and I continued exchanging stories for who knows how long. I felt extraordinarily blessed to have someone like Dave, who I had long admired but was just beginning to know, as a new colleague and friend.
MIKE MCKENNA: Is there a better feeling than when you do something completely new and it turns out really well? That was me earlier this season when shooting a goaltending segment for Knight Life alongside Darren Eliot. It was my first time filming an analytic talk-through and I wasn't really sure how it would turn out. Going in, we had a rough outline of topics, but because the on-air conversation was so much fun, it went off in several tangents that ended up making the final cut. The AT&T SportsNet team did an amazing job of splicing in pictures to help illustrate our points, and having perspective from two different eras of goaltending brought extra depth to the piece. Darren and I have a similar background coming from ECAC teams in NCAA hockey (Cornell and St. Lawrence, respectively), and his vast media experience made me feel at ease. We had so much fun shooting it and felt really proud of the final product!
DAREN MILLARD: It occurred in the middle of a game but had absolutely nothing to do with the players or the result. Chance showed up on our AT&T SportNet set and asked if he could use our perch during the next television timeout. After a quick consultation with Darren Eliot and a speedy negotiation with Chance, we agreed. It was then that the overgrown desert lizard told us to read the fine print which stated our participation was required. In the spirit of the job, I will do almost anything; I do not dance. I don't dance for the job; I don't dance for the kids.I barely danced at my wedding. The task asked of Eliot and I was to perform the Gila Dance. If you were in attendance at T-Mobile Arena that night, I apologize. Same script if you witnessed some of the videos that circulated. We were under the impression that as we were starting the dance, and the in-arena director would cut away to fans around the arena, I jumped in like someone swimming the Olympic final of the 50-meter freestyle. I was on fire, doing my part, and when the director cut the feed to spectators, I breathed a sigh of relief. THEN, we were back on KnightTron. It went on for 90 seconds, done, then not done. It was awful, and it was embarrassing, it was terrible for humankind! The only way that moment would have been beneficial was if aliens were waiting to attack. One look at us and they would have jumped to the next galaxy. Usually, people make fun of you after a moment like that. Nobody could look at us. Shane Hnidy tried a couple of jabs, but even the former defenseman couldn't follow through. My boss never mentioned it. For that, I am thankful.