Butch Goring, 1st coach of Las Vegas Thunder, likes Golden Knights’ chances to succeed

NEW YORK — If the Golden Knights intend to embrace the history of pro hockey in Las Vegas, they should remember Butch Goring.

Goring, a former Los Angeles Kings and New York Islanders center, was the first coach of the Las Vegas Thunder in 1993 when the team debuted in the International Hockey League at the Thomas & Mack Center. The team played six seasons, then ceased operations after the 1998-99 season when it couldn’t reach terms with UNLV on a lease extension.

“I have great memories of that year,” said Goring, an 18-year NHL veteran who won four Stanley Cups with the Islanders in the 1980s and has been the TV analyst for the team since 2010. “The fan support was tremendous, and we had a really good team, which helped create a lot of the excitement.

“The Thomas & Mack wasn’t a great hockey building, but the fans made it a tough place for opposing teams to come in and play us.

“It was still a small city then. Bobby Bourne was my assistant coach, and after the games, we’d go to the Palace Station to unwind. We became friends with a few of the pit bosses, and we’d get to drink for free, which was a nice perk for us.”

That first Thunder team, which included 17-year-old Radek Bonk and veteran goaltender Clint Malarchuk, went 52-18-11, won the Pacific Division and finished with 115 points. It was good enough to win the Huber Trophy, which went to the IHL team with the most regular-season points. The Thunder then was eliminated by San Diego in the first round of the playoffs.

“That was disappointing,” Goring said. “We had a very successful year, and we expected to contend for the Turner Cup.”

Goring got that chance the next year when he left to coach the Denver Grizzlies, who won the Turner Cup title in 1995. The team moved to Salt Lake City the following year and won a second Turner Cup.

That success got Goring back to the NHL as a head coach with the Islanders in 1999. He was fired after two years and has worked in TV since.

“I love what I do,” Goring said. “I have no interest in going back to coaching.”

That might be because he’s good at what he does. The Islanders have been one of the NHL’s biggest disappointments this season, and Goring has not been afraid to criticize them. But he does it in a professional way and is balanced in his work.

Goring is among many people in hockey who believe the Knights have a chance to be successful sooner rather than later. He knows general manager George McPhee and has great respect for his hockey acumen.

“I think the way everything is set up for the expansion draft and the amateur draft they probably can win quicker than previous (expansion) teams,” Goring said. “But I think just as important is building support in the community. They need to get their players out into the community, get them out to the schools, connect with the fans. You can’t have a take-it-for-granted attitude.

“I think Bill Foley is a smart guy, and he realizes this. Even though Las Vegas has a history with hockey, you’re still in a nontraditional hockey market. You have to sell the sport and grow it at the grass-roots level. If they put some effort into developing youth hockey and going out into the community, it can be a huge success. The city is definitely ready for major league sports.”

Contact Steve Carp at scarp@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2913. Follow @stevecarprj on Twitter.