According to folks in the know, the Vegas Golden Knights name “has caught the attention of the United States military because a parachute team goes by the same name.”
They aren’t happy that the new NHL team has effectively “stolen” the name for the hockey team, and more than a few people have called it “disrespectful” to the members of the military.
Alison Bettencourt, a spokeswoman for the Army Marketing and Research Group in Arlington, Virginia was quoted as saying, “We’re reviewing the situation and figuring out what the way ahead would be.”
The Golden Knights are based in Fort Bragg and have used this name since the 1960s.
“We understand that one of the Las Vegas team owners (Bill Foley) has Army connections, and will likely understand our interest in this announcement is meant to protect the proud history of the Army’s Golden Knights and their vital role in telling the Army story and connecting America with their Army,” said Bettencourt, who noted the group learned of the Golden Knights through media accounts last Wednesday.
There is no Army connection with this team,” said Bettencourt, adding that the Army wants to ensure that the Golden Knights parachute team is known for who and what they’ve been since the 1960s, when they started using the moniker. The parachute team is one of only three Defense Department-sanctioned aerial demonstration teams, and its soldiers perform at more than 100 events a year.
I’m well aware of that,” Foley, a 1968 graduate of West Point, told the Review-Journal on Tuesday night. “But we didn’t check with the Army on the name Golden Knights because once we copyrighted and trademarked it, our lawyers and the NHL’s lawyers didn’t feel we needed to.”
