South Lake Tahoe is famous for its vast expanse of pure blue water, snow-dusted mountains and ski resorts. It’s been the site for numerous acclaimed films including Bodyguard, The Godfather Part II and the TV series Bonanza.
There was just one thing missing: a professional sports team.
The ECHL changed that in July 2023, when they announced the approval of an application for a team in South Lake Tahoe, to be located in Stateline, Nevada. The ownership group was backed by former Heisman Trophy winner and NFL quarterback Tim Tebow, along with business executive David Hodges. Zawyer Sports & Entertainment would oversee the management and operation of the franchise.
Later that year, the club announced its name would be the Knight Monsters, with the logo depicting Tahoe Tessie, the mythological creature rumored to be lurking below the surface of the 1,644-foot-deep lake.
The Vegas Golden Knights were named as the NHL affiliate, and the Henderson Silver Knights the AHL affiliate. Knight Monster home games would take place at the Tahoe Blue Event Center with a seating capacity of over 4,200.
In late May, Alex Loh was hired to be the Knight Monsters’ first head coach. He spent the previous two seasons as an assistant with the Savannah Ghost Pirates before being named the club’s interim head coach last February. He was also head coach for the Adirondack Thunder from 2018-22 after serving as both an assistant and associate head coach.
Starting From Scratch
A few months isn’t much time to move a family, put a coaching staff in place and recruit players, but Loh embraced the challenge. It was one of the biggest reasons he accepted the job after realizing he no longer figured in the Ghost Pirates’ plans.
“Anytime you have the opportunity to build a team from the ground up, you’re not inheriting anything, you’re not working with what other people have done, it’s nice” Loh explained. “You get the opportunity to put your stamp on it right away without having to manage what had been done in the past.”
In putting a roster together, the first box all players had to check was character.
“That’s something I learned a long time ago, that you need to have good people,” Loh said. “That was always the first thing, to make sure the guys you’re bringing in are top quality people. In terms of hockey, you’re looking for the best players you can get your hands on. You can generally mold guys to what you’re expecting, but it’s hard to teach talent.”
Considering the short amount of time Loh and his staff had to work with, the Knight Monsters have assembled an impressive group both offensively and on the back end. One of the team’s biggest acquisitions occurred in September with the signing of center Luke Adam.
The 34-year-old veteran was a second-round pick (44th overall) by the Buffalo Sabres in the 2008 NHL Draft. He played parts of four seasons with the Sabres, scoring 15 goals and 11 assists for 26 points.
Adam also appeared in four games with the Columbus Blue Jackets and played 342 games in the AHL with Portland, Rochester, Springfield and Hartford. He’s spent the past eight years playing overseas and tallied 25 points (5-20-25) in 28 games last season with HC Plzeň in Czechia and HC Banska Bystrica in Slovakia.
“If you start with the most experience, you start with Luke,” Loh said. “(He’s) a guy that has close to 100 NHL games and had some decent numbers in those games, a ton of AHL experience and now coming back from being overseas in some top leagues.”
Anthony Collins became the first signed player in Knight Monsters history. Loh was familiar with Collins when he played for Savannah last season.
🚨 First player signing in Knight Monsters franchise history is happening today at 3pm PST. Who’s excited?!
— Tahoe Knight Monsters (@Knight_monsters) July 9, 2024
A forward who brings plenty of physicality, Collins has put up 88 points (33-55-88) while racking up 1,042 penalty minutes, the sixth-most in ECHL history.
Logan Nelson is another veteran forward who posted 173 points (60-113-173) in 179 games spanning three seasons with the Rapid City Rush.
Forward Chris Dodero joins Tahoe after spending the past two seasons in Austria and Germany. In 2023-24, he tallied 22 points (10-12-22) in 28 games with the Rosenheim Star Bulls (DEL-2), and logged two helpers in eight games with Austria’s Graz HC.
Loh brought in several blueliners who can also put the puck in the net including Brenan Kapcheck, who scored 59 points (7-52-59) in 115 games with the Newfoundland Growlers over the past three seasons. Jake Johnson recorded 19 points (3-16-19) as a rookie with Fort Wayne last season, while Nate Kallen tallied 23 points 5-18-23) in 39 games playing in Scotland last season.
The biggest question mark for the Knight Monsters may be in net. Jordan Papirny, who spent time with the Ghost Pirates last season, signed with Henderson and is currently in camp with Tahoe on a tryout. Papirny posted an 8-7-4 record with a 3.47 goals-against average and .881 save percentage in 19 games. Bailey Brkin is also in camp on a tryout.
A Tahoe Miracle?
It wasn’t so long ago that the Vegas Golden Knights shocked the hockey world by getting to the Stanley Cup Finals in their first season. Can the Tahoe Knight Monsters pull off a similar miracle?
“Our ultimate goal is to make the playoffs,” Loh said. “Once you get to the playoffs, we’ve seen at all different levels how anything can happen at that point. You’re just looking for a seat at the dance, and you can kind of see from there where things go.”
