Boy, what a great time it is to be a Nevada hockey fan, eh? The Henderson Silver Knights (yes, those Henderson Silver Knights) clinched a Calder Cup playoff spot. That's right, the Silver Knights are going to the playoffs. What's more is they're in third place in the Pacific Division entering Sunday.
KNIGHTS VERSUS EVERYBODY!!!⚔️#ForgeTheKnight | @GoldenKnights pic.twitter.com/ClZHQ04G8g
— ⚔️ - Henderson Silver Knights (@HSKnights) April 12, 2026
I know, my jaw's still on the floor after all that. But that's not all. The Tahoe Knight Monsters are also going to the playoffs. While this season has been more underwhelming than their inaugural stint, the Knight Monsters are building another impressive campaign.
Then there are the Vegas Golden Knights. You already expected this one, despite a rocky season that saw their head coach fired. But they defeated the Colorado Avalanche in overtime on Saturday, 3-2, clinching their eighth playoff spot in nine seasons. All of this happened despite a terrible campaign where the team will have more losses than wins for the first time in franchise history.
Yet, here we are. Right now, Nevada hockey fans are having a moment. They're experiencing a full-on uprising in the Silver State, watching teams like the Golden Knights and the Silver Knights play awesome hockey. That's not even mentioning how UNLV's men's hockey team won an ACHA national championship last season.
Ironically, this goes back to the whole stigma that a hockey team could never thrive in the desert. Remember what supposed intellectual and geeky quasi-millennial Nate Silver said?
"Probably a bad idea to put a hockey team in the middle of the desert."Nate Silver on X
Hey, Nate. The early to mid-2010s called. They want you back and being a nerd isn't cool anymore. Don't let the door hit you in the arse on the way out, too. There's one thing that people like Nate and hockey purists don't understand: community trumps everything, especially when your owner has a clear winning mission.
When the tragic mass shooting in Las Vegas happened on October 1, 2017, Las Vegas needed something to lift its spirits up. The new expansion team was set to arrive and wasn't expected to do much. However, they proved everyone wrong and made it all the way to the Stanley Cup Final.
Lo and behold, the seeds were planted for Nevada to become *GASP* a hockey state. Fans are seeing that right now with all three professional Silver State teams thriving and making the playoffs. Keep proving the haters wrong, Nevada.