METEPEC, Mexico -- Merlene Rodriguez watched her sons Mattias and Mauro play street hockey on a makeshift mini rink at the “LosVGK en Mexico” fan fest on Sunday with the focused gaze of an NHL scout.
“They really love hockey,” Rodriguez said. “This is fantastic. Good for the kids. Good for hockey in Mexico.”
The street hockey rink was part of the Golden Knights’ day-long fan fest during the team’s first visit to Mexico to extend their brand and help grow the sport south of the U.S. border.
More than 800 people attended the event outside the Winter Sports Center Metepec, where the Golden Knights conducted youth clinics over the weekend with coaches from the Mexico Ice Hockey Federation.
“There were three coach buses from Mexico City waiting for us when we got here,” said Benjamin Thomas, Vegas’ director for Latino marketing and outreach. “We knew that there was excitement based on registration, but to see hundreds of people, busloads of people show up for the fan fest is awesome.”
The fan fest had a Golden Knights and Mexican flavor. A DJ played as patrons walked through the event to play floor hockey, entered a raffle to win Vegas jerseys and posed for photos with Chance, the Vegas Mascot, and members of the Viva Vegas cheerleading squad.