GnashVegas Casino Night and Auction Gives Preds Players, Fans Memorable Experience

The Nashville Predators came together to host their 11th annual GnashVegas Casino Night and Auction event presented by King Jewelers on Feb. 4 at Bridgestone Arena.

The event sparked a night of fun as Preds players and families, fans and staff conversed over the poker table, participated in photo booths and tasted food items at featured local restaurant stands. In addition, specialized jerseys, guitars signed by many of the music industry’s top names, customized baskets featuring each Preds player’s favorite items and much more were all auctioned off with proceeds going to the Preds Foundation.

“For us, this is our biggest fundraiser of the year…so we pull out all of the stops for this event,” Predators Vice President of Community Relations Rebecca King said. “We have all our coaches, all our broadcasters, all our players [here]. So, this is showcasing the organization, but it's also raising the most significant amount of money, and all that money goes into a bucket for us to then distribute grants.”

The success of this year’s event will result in the Foundation being able to disperse over $825,000 in grants to various organizations in Middle Tennessee this May.

In addition to all of the tangible items offered, the one-on-one experiences that many of the fans shared with Preds players were a definite highlight of the night. With opportunities including trying a hand at a poker table with a player as the card dealer and sitting in on a team photo, the annual event continues to play a significant role in connecting the team to their community.

“There is not one guy on our team that if you sit with them for 10 minutes at a poker table, you're not going to like more,” Preds CEO Sean Henry said. “It really is that simple, because [the players] enjoy it. There's something about when people are joyful, you kind of fall in love a little bit more.”

“This year, we have so many new players and such a different roster that it's really the fans’ best opportunity to mix and mingle with them,” King said. “We’ve had a lot of the same players year to year, but now we've got superstars from other teams that people would love to get to know.”

One of the team’s newest members, Zach L’Heureux, had exactly one word to describe his first GnashVegas experience: “Awesome.”

Attendees may have seen L’Heureux sporting a fan-gifted cowboy hat throughout the night. After spending a few months in Tennessee, the rookie has embraced the Nashville culture, and he seems to agree.

“I think just getting to see how close people are to the team [is great],” L’Heureux said. “They've been to every game; they just follow the team so much and know so much about us. It's pretty special to get to meet them in person, and obviously [there are] a lot of good people in Nashville, so it’s always fun.”

L’Heureux also expressed his appreciation for the opportunity to spread some joy within the community and witness “the human side” of hockey.

“Anytime you get to go to a community event like this, it's the little things outside the rink that you appreciate.” L’Heureux said. “It puts a smile on your face.”

As the night came to a close, a collection of high spirits made the success of yet another GnashVegas clear.

“I think what we always want people to know is that for us to run the Foundation, we put on all these events…so the participation by our fans, our top partners is hugely appreciated,” King said. “It's very important for our events to be successful.”