The Hockey News

Las Vegas expansion team owner Bill Foley isn’t having the easiest time naming his franchise. “I didn’t realize how complicated it was, and it is complicated,”



Foley said last week when introducing George McPhee as the team’s first GM. “We are working our way through the process right now, as we speak…We have a lot names in mind, but a lot of the ones I really liked are trademarked, so that is a little bit of an issue.” The assumption is Foley is running into issues with naming the team Black Knights. A graduate of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, Foley wants the team to have some tie to his alma mater. But Foley didn’t say it was Black Knights or nothing. In fact, he said he’d take suggestions if others were willing to give them. His only request was that the name should “represent Las Vegas, represent the environment and be unique to Las Vegas.” Foley has said the NHL urged him to not to go the gambling route with the name.



According to Foley, the league “has made it very clear that it really should not be associated with gambling and so on. It needs to be something a little different than that.” But when it came to suggesting team names,



sports betting site Sports Interaction appears to have simply come up with the first 34 names they could think of, attached betting odds to ‘em and called it a day. Seriously, check some of these out:

THE TOP FOUR



Black Knights: The best odds for the obvious choice. It’s the name most have guessed, and it seems certain it’s what Foley wants the team to be called. He might end up dropping Black from the name to make the club Las Vegas Knights, but this seems the likely choice.



Aces: Hey! A name associated with gambling! This has the second-best odds, but it doesn’t seem a feasible option if the team is trying to stay away from any ties to the casinos. It’s a solid name, though.



Bandits: Tied with Aces for the second-best odds, Bandits could actually work. The name was previously used for a failed International Basketball League franchise, but no one is likely to remember that because the IBL’s Silver Bandits were around for two short seasons before the league folded.



Blackjacks: Another gambling name, another unlikely contender. Blackjacks has the fourth-best odds, after which the list starts to go off the rails.



THE OUTSIDE SHOTS



Jokers: Back to gambling and cards, though the logo could be interesting.



Jokerit Helsinki’s logo and jerseys are excellent and that could be a template of sorts for Las Vegas to use. That alone should be enough for it to be considered.



Pharaohs: Like Jokers, the logo would be interesting. Color combinations could be fun, too, if they run with blue and gold or something of that sort. But it’s a big step down from Bandits, Aces or Black Knights.



White Tigers: That’s one way to ensure Mike Tyson is a fan, so the name has that going for it.



Dealers: A no-go unless every player wears a tacky vest over the jersey and name tags on the front. Hard to understand how the odds are this good for such an awful name.



Chips: Nope.



Others in odds range include: Whales, Action, Big Shots, Jackpots, Sharps, Hustlers.



THE LONG SHOTS



Rat Pack: It’d be a unique name that harkens back to a certain era of Las Vegas entertainment. Not exactly sure how you make a logo for a team called the Rat Pack, and the Florida Panthers kind of have the market cornered on rat mascots. Looking at you,



Victor E. Rat.



Flamingoes: Players who lift a leg to avoid blocking a shot are sometimes referred to as “flamingoes.” There’s probably a zero-percent chance Las Vegas selects this as its name. The pink jerseys would be great, though.



Deputies: The law enforcement-style name would be a nice counter to those who thought the team could go the gambling route. Strange to go with Deputies and not Sheriffs, though.



Gamblers: It wouldn’t be surprising if the league would rather have the team enter its first season without a name than actually allow it to be called the Gamblers.



Magicians: Everyone has to wear a cape and the team hits the ice to Final Countdown. Who says no?



Shuffle: Nothing strikes fear into the hearts of opponents like…shuffling a deck of cards.



Others in odds range include: Rollers, Snake Eyes, Clubs, 86ers, Boxcars, Steamers.



THE RIDICULOUS



Prizefighters: Boxing and MMA are huge in Las Vegas. That part makes sense. But it’s not the same sport! This would be a terrible name, but it’s somehow not even the worst on the list.



Stickmen: You know the game where you roll the dice and say you need a new pair of shoes? A “stickman” is the person giving you the dice at the table. The logo could be fun but the name feels so generic. It sounds like the equivalent to naming a basketball team ‘Hoopguys.’



Streakers: What?! Would they play in see-through jerseys? Who came up with this?



Others in odds range include: Bosses, Wiseguys, Grinders, Tumbling Dice.



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