In this edition of 'From the Archive,' we take a look at the first time the Las Vegas Thunder took to the ice.

The scene was typical Las Vegas.

Ring announcer Michael Buffer, dressed in a black tuxedo, stood in the middle of the Thomas & Mack Center and bellowed,”Let’s get ready to ruuumble,” as the fans roared their approval.

Celebrities dashed to their seats. Arnold Schwarzenegger was whisked to a private box, while tennis star Andre Agassi sat in the stands.

Only this wasn’t a title boxing match: it was Las Vegas’ first pro hockey game.

The Las Vegas Thunder, the International League’s newest franchise, made its debut before a sellout crowd of 13, 125 Oct. 15 with a 3-2 shootout win over the Atlanta Knights.

“We proved tonight beyond a shadow of a doubt that Las Vegas is indeed a hockey town,” owner Ken Stickney said.

In the weeks leading up to the opener, Stickney and general manager Bob Strumm went to great pains to make certain Las Vegans knew the club existed. On the morning of the game, Thunder players appeared on 14 radio shows.

The team Strumm assembled, which includes familiar players such as Brent Ashton, Rod Buskas and Clint Malarchuk, has nearly 4,000 games of NHL experience. The team is coached by former NHL player and bench boss Butch Goring.

That lends instant credibility in a town that loves a winner. But it’s the one player with no pro experience garnering most of the attention. Seventeen-year-old Czech sensation Radek Bonk, signed to a one-year contract for $100,000 plus incentives, is the youngest player ever in the IHL.

A potential first overall NHL draft pick in 1994, Bonk is the centerpiece of the club’s advertising campaign, along with former University of Nevada Las Vegas basketball coach Jerry Tarkanian.

Tarkanian, who left UNLV last season for the National Basketball Association after several investigations by the National Collegiate Athletic Association, remains enormously popular in Las Vegas. He joined the Thunder as special assistant for community relations and appeared in a series of humorous commercials to help spark ticket sales.

In the home opener, shortly after a spectacular $100,000 opening that included fireworks, a fog and smoke machine and a series of loud thunderclaps over the public address system, Tarkanian couldn’t contain his glee.

“This is great,” he said. “I’m still learning the game, but the fans are really into it. I think they were looking for something to cheer about.”

They didn’t have to look hard. The crowd was on its feet from the player introductions and roaring for what seemed to be the rest of the game.

“I knew the fan support would be good, but this was way beyond good,” Thunder forward Marc Habscheid said.

The response was beyond expectation. The team sold its entire allotment of programs, which it had thought would last for two weeks. Lines in the souvenir stands were so long, they stayed open 30 minutes after the game ended.

The Thunder matched its marketing success with impressive play early in the season, winning its first three games.

“I guess we owed the fans this,” Malarchuk said. “It was an awful lot of fun and I know the players appreciated it.”

THN Archive is an exclusive vault of 2,640 issues and more than 156,000 stories for subscribers, chronicling the complete history of The Hockey News from 1947 until today. Visit THN.com/archive and subscribe today at subscribe.thehockeynews.com.

Make sure you bookmark THN's Vegas Golden Knights site for the latest news, exclusive interviews, breakdowns, and so much more.

Canucks Reportedly Interested In Kessel

Golden Knights Reportedly Interested In Sharks Forward

Hill Stops 31 Shots To Help Golden Knights End Oilers' Winning Streak with 3-1 victory

FROM THE ARCHIVE: Las Vegas Gamblers Taking Up Hockey

Golden Knights Prospect Focused On 'Playing the Game Right'

Follow Paul Delos Santos on X at @pauldelos_