Occasional contributor…
A Little About Your Vegas Hockey Podcast Hosts
It’s founder, Mark Warner, says the Vegas Hockey Podcast started when Mr Foley announced his ticket drive for a new Las Vegas based entry in the National Hockey League. Gradually, the new show has evolved into an interview based podcast, welcoming in former players, local radio and sports gaming figures, as well as bloggers and media members from around the world to talk about the teams they cover. Mark and his co-host, Christopher Lizza, urge you to tune in weekly, Mark adding, “You just may see your favorite team featured on the Podcast!”
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Mark Warner is founder and owner of Vegas Hockey Podcast. He was born in Phoenix, AZ, and raised in Southern CA. He’s been a hockey fan since being blown away by the 1980 Men’s USA Olympic Hockey Team. Growing up as an LA Kings Fan (during the years of the famed Triple Crown Line), Mark adds that he’s still always been a fan of the game in general.
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Christopher Lizza co-hosts the Vegas Hockey Podcast from afar. A Long Island/New York City guy, Chris writes for The Hockey Writers, and he’s been writing about hockey and baseball for about 6 years. A New Your Islanders fans since the early 80’s, his goal with the Vegas Hockey Podcast is to bring the same insight he’s always shared through his writings.
Ask the Vegas Hockey Podcast guys a hockey question or make a comment down below. They’d love to hear from you.
Do you think the NHL has enough of a fan base for expansion into Las Vegas or would the team eventually end up like the Atlanta Thrashers etc and either be relocated or propped up by the NHL.
I know the Wranglers play in the ECHL but is there enough interest?, or would the Show be able to put on a show to bring in out of town visitors to their games.
ps what do you think of the NHL playing in Europe again?, personally as some one from Scotland it was fantastic to travel a short distance to Sweden to watch 3 NHL teams play a regular season game.
Hi, and thanks for listening and getting touch. Yes, there is absolutely enough of a hockey fan base in Las Vegas to support an NHL team here long term. Aside from all the market research that Mr. Foley has done before he even agreed to join the Maloof brothers in their attempt to secure a franchise, everything since then points to the fact that we are ready to support an NHL team.
First and foremost is the fact that Hockey Vision LLC has secured over 13,500 season ticket deposits, which is more than some teams have in more traditional hockey markets. Imagine if someone waltzed into your city and announced they were selling tickets to a 41 night winter concert series but didn’t have any bands booked. And had no guarantee that there even would BE a band. How many tickets would get sold? Not as many as Mr.Foley has for hockey, that’s for sure. A lot has been made about our “transient” population. We have over 2.2 million people in the valley, the 30th largest market in the U.S., and the largest without a major league sports franchise. Most people who have moved here are 25-50 years old, a great demographic for a sports team. Several hundred thousand have moved here to escape from winters chill in the North, as well as from Canada herself, and one thing they miss is their hockey. When we had Clint Malarchuck on the show, he made this very point. Clint was here from 1993-1999 With the Las Vegas Thunder as a goalie, Asst. Ciach, Head Coach, Assistant GM, and every other capacity you can think of. He played in the NHL for many years with Quebec City and the Buffalo Sabres, and said flat out that the fans weren’t there on ticket comps, but we’re there to see hockey. I can vouch for that, as I was there myself! When the arena refused to renew their lease they were forced to move, but we were consistently in the top half in league attendance. When The Wranglers started play, they lived here for 13 years and also drew well for the ECHL until they also were refused a lease at the Orleans Hotel. Las Vegas also hosted the first outdoor game in the modern era in 1991 when Ceasers Palace hosted the Kings and Rangers in 1991. Temperature was 91 at game time. Lol But the city clearly has a 20+ year history with hockey, and right now the people are excited to hear the news that we wil finally have a team to call our own!!!
What is the state of youth hockey in Las Vegas? I know when my oldest boy played there were always a few teams from there, but they never competed well.
Hi and thanks for listening and reaching out. Youth hockey is growing fast in Las Vegas. The Las Vegas Storm are our most successful team right now. Former NHL player Gabe Gauthier is the Director and Head Coach and has the boys playing some real good hockey, as evidenced by them reaching the finals in their league last season. Jason Zucker of the Minnesota Wild is the first player to reach the NHL after spending time playing in the Youth Roller Hockey Leagues before heading to the Great White North to cut his teeth in Juniors. His brother Evan also is an assistant Coach with the LV Storm. They started the season winning 5 straight and six of nine before hitting a bit of a slump, but look for them to snap out of it and remain competitive throughout the season.
I will say more needs to be done, and Mr. Foley has committed to building more rinks and creating more opportunities for Las Vegas youth to play the game. It’s his commitment to the community that makes me believe he will grow the hockey culture here in Vegas, and he really already has.
I just wanted to let you guys know what a great addition your hockey podcast is to our Hockey Talk Radio lineup. I also wanted to take a second to thank you for mentioning us frequently during your shows. We’re all in this thing together, I think, and our combined promotional efforts can only help make every show host here a household name.
It’s our pleasure to be on the station and we look forward to growing HockeyTalkRadio.US in the future!