Nine years after October 1 changed Las Vegas, the Golden Knights were once again at the center of the city’s remembrance, using the day to honor the community ties that formed in the aftermath of the tragedy.
The team held a closed practice out of respect, then opened the day to local first responders and special guests before allowing community members to meet with players and coaches afterward. It was another example of how the franchise has stayed woven into the city’s response to 1 October and the years that followed.
Since 2018, the Golden Knights have partnered eight times with Vitalant for an annual blood drive. Vitalant Communications Manager Nicole Schultz, who was born and raised in Las Vegas, said the team’s involvement gives the effort real momentum.
“I think that they really put a lot of love and heart into this blood drive, and it shows,” Schultz said.
Schultz said the partnership also helps shine a light on the need for blood donation. She said every donation matters, can help two or more patients, and goes beyond emergency situations to support many people who need it.
“When the Golden Knights put their name and their weight behind something, the community is almost guaranteed to show up,” Schultz said.
And show up they did. Community members came out in force, and several booths were set up throughout the drive.
One of them belonged to the Honored 25 Foundation, created by 1 October survivor Kristin Munding. Munding said she started the foundation to give back after the tragedy and to focus on the mental health effects on first responders.
“I wanted to be able to do something more than just say thank you,” Munding said. “We see so many people that are still struggling. Even though they see hard events all the time, first responders are still struggling with 1 October in particular.”
Munding said she has worked to push back against the “suck it up” mindset she believes many first responders carry. She said that approach is not sustainable, especially after something like this, and the community response helped restore her faith in people.
“It really showed that there are bad people in the world, but there sure are a lot of better people,” Munding said.
She also credited the Golden Knights for the support they have continued to show survivors and the broader Las Vegas community.
“The Golden Knights have been so amazing, just as a survivor, they’ve been such a light to all of us, that they still continue to do so much for the Route 91 community and the Las Vegas community,” Munding said.
Head coach Ryan Craig, who has been with the team since its inaugural season, said he remembers the city rallying around one another after the shooting.
“There was a rally within the community to support each other in any way we could,” Craig said.
Patrol Detective Amy May, who was at the Route 91 Festival the night of the shooting, said the team’s continued involvement stands out to her.
“For a team to support us, support the community, and just care is just something I’ve never seen at any sporting event I’ve ever been to. It just shows how much they appreciate the people who live here,” May said.
Katie Zafiris, a fan since the team’s inception, said the public response after 1 October deepened the connection between the franchise and the city.
“I think everyone was really excited to get a hockey team, but I think once the community saw how everyone banded together right after that and just showed their respect, I think it just brought even more love to the team,” Zafiris said.
Schultz called Las Vegas a “big small town,” and Craig said the relationship between the team and the city has only grown stronger.
“I think the bond that was forged between the team and the city has carried through here the past nine years,” Craig said.
In a city marked by loss, the Golden Knights have remained part of the response, and part of the remembrance, ever since.
“We would be fans anyway, but I think this makes us so much more devoted,” Zafiris said.
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