Tanner Laczynski, Henderson's Record-Tying Scorer, Picked Up Where He Left Off

by Ryan Rose

What Happened

The Henderson Silver Knights opened the season at home with two games against the Bakersfield Condors. The first was on Saturday, October 3, and the second was on Sunday, October 4. Both were at Lee's Family Forum in Henderson.

On Saturday, Henderson won the opener 4-3. Laczynski had a goal and two assists that night, according to the Silver Knights. Alexander Holtz, one of his linemates, scored twice, including a power-play goal with just over four minutes left. Alex Weiermair scored the first goal of the game, which was also his first goal as a pro, according to the Condors' game release. Bakersfield made it close late with a 6-on-4 power-play goal, but Henderson held on.

On Sunday, Bakersfield won 3-1. Henderson's only goal came with Laczynski picking up the primary assist, according to the team. That gave him four points over the weekend: one goal and three assists. In the team's write-up, Laczynski called a weekend split "not the worst thing, and it's not the best thing." He also said getting the first win out of the way was big for the group.

The Silver Knights then went on the road to San Diego. On Saturday, October 10, the San Diego Gulls beat Henderson 2-0 at Pechanga Arena. Gulls goalie Damian Clara stopped all 25 shots he faced. That left Henderson with one win and two losses after three games.

Laczynski is skating on a line with Jonas Rondbjerg and Alexander Holtz to start the year. The team said all three were among the last group of players the Golden Knights sent down to Henderson after training camp. That is worth knowing. It means the parent club looked hard at all three before deciding they would start the year in the AHL.

Tanner Laczynski in a Vegas Golden Knights uniform, photographed around the time he signed his three-year contract extension in July 2026

Why It Matters to Las Vegas Residents

For a lot of Henderson families, the Silver Knights are the hockey team they actually go to. Golden Knights tickets at T-Mobile Arena can be hard to get and expensive. The Silver Knights play 36 home games right in Henderson, with Saturday home games at 6 p.m. and Sunday home games at 5 p.m., according to the team's schedule. That is the kind of start time that works for parents with young kids.

Minor league hockey has a built-in problem. Good players leave. When a player plays well in the AHL, the NHL team often calls him up, and fans lose the person they came to see. The Silver Knights know this well. The team noted that several scorers from last season, including Raphael Lavoie, Trevor Connelly, and Braeden Bowman, are now in the NHL. That is great for those players and for the Golden Knights. It is harder for a fan who bought a jersey with one of their names on it.

Laczynski gives Henderson fans something steady. He signed a three-year deal with Vegas that runs through the 2028-29 season. It carries a $900,000 average annual value, with a total value of $2.7 million, according to Daily Faceoff, which credited PuckPedia with first reporting it. Of course, a contract with the Golden Knights does not promise he stays in Henderson. He could be called up at any time if Vegas needs a forward. But for now, he is the top returning scorer and one of the leaders in the room.

The yearly salary numbers are worth a closer look. Daily Faceoff reported salaries of $850,000 in year one, $900,000 in year two, and $905,000 in year three, citing PuckPedia's report. Those three numbers add up to a bit less than the $2.7 million total that the same reports gave, and PuckPedia's own contract page lists a different third-year figure. So the exact year-three salary is [NOT VERIFIED]. What is clear is the length. The deal covers three seasons, which is longer than the two-year deal he signed when he first came to Vegas.

There is also a youth hockey angle. Plenty of Henderson kids play house league and travel hockey. A local player who is good, healthy, and wearing an "A" as an assistant captain is a good role model to point to. The team runs six Kids Day Sundays this season, when fans 14 and under get a giveaway and can take a postgame slapshot on the ice. If your child plays, those are the nights to circle.

Finally, there is a neighborhood angle. A busy arena brings people to Henderson restaurants, bars, and shops on game nights. Every home game is 36 chances for families from Green Valley, Inspirada, Anthem, and Seven Hills to make a night of it close to home, without driving to the Strip.

Background and History

Laczynski is 29 and grew up in Minooka, Illinois, according to Daily Faceoff. The Philadelphia Flyers drafted him in the sixth round of the 2016 NHL Entry Draft. He played four seasons of college hockey at Ohio State, where he scored 143 points in 138 games. He also played for the United States at the 2017 World Junior Championship, where the U.S. won gold.

He played parts of his early pro career in the Flyers' system, then signed a two-year, two-way contract with Vegas in July 2024. Across his NHL career with the Flyers and Golden Knights, he has played 56 games with 3 goals and 7 assists. In the AHL, he has played parts of six seasons, with 175 points in 196 regular-season games, according to Daily Faceoff.

Last season was his breakout. He scored 22 goals and 42 assists for 64 points in 62 AHL games with Henderson. That tied the Silver Knights' single-season scoring record, according to the team. (The name of the player he tied is [NOT VERIFIED] in the sources used for this story.) He finished eighth in AHL scoring, played in his first AHL All-Star Game, and was named to the Second Team All-AHL. He also played 10 games with the Golden Knights and had five assists.

A Second Team All-AHL spot is a big deal at this level. The AHL names a First Team and a Second Team at the end of each season, picking the best players at each position from across the whole league. Making one of those teams puts a player among the top forwards in a league that covers more than 30 clubs [NOT VERIFIED]. For a player who first signed in Vegas on a two-way deal, it was the season right before his new three-year contract.

The 62 games were a career high. The team's feature makes clear that staying healthy has been the big story of his pro career. Injuries kept him off the ice in past seasons, so a full year in the lineup was a big part of why his numbers jumped. The Silver Knights also led the AHL in scoring last season, according to the team, so Laczynski was the top scorer on the league's highest-scoring offense.

A hockey player in a helmet holding a stick on the ice, similar to the forwards on the Henderson Silver Knights' top line

His linemates have history with him too. Laczynski has played with Alexander Holtz for the last two seasons, according to the team, with Holtz assigned to Henderson late in each of those years. He and Jonas Rondbjerg played together 32 times last season. Rondbjerg was hurt just before the Olympic break and did not return until early April. Starting a season together, with all three healthy, is new for this group.

It helps to know how the Henderson and Vegas teams fit together. The Silver Knights are the American Hockey League affiliate of the Golden Knights. In plain terms, Henderson is the top development team for Vegas. Players under contract with the Golden Knights can be sent to Henderson to play big minutes, and then called back up when Vegas needs them. That is why the team noted that Laczynski, Rondbjerg, and Holtz were among the last players the Golden Knights sent down after camp. The two teams being about a 20-minute drive apart [NOT VERIFIED] makes those moves easy compared to most NHL and AHL pairings.

For a fan, that setup has a fun side effect. The players you watch in Henderson on a Saturday night could be playing at T-Mobile Arena a week later. Last season, Laczynski did exactly that, splitting time between the two clubs. Following the Silver Knights is a way to get to know the next wave of Golden Knights before most of the valley does.

This is also a new chapter for the team. The 2026-27 season is the Silver Knights' seventh in the AHL and the first under head coach Joel Ward, according to the team's schedule release.

What Happens Next

The Silver Knights play a 72-game season, split evenly with 36 home games and 36 road games. The front half of the schedule leans toward home. According to the team, 11 of the first 15 games are at Lee's Family Forum. Here are the rest of Henderson's October games from the team's published schedule:

Wednesday, October 14: vs. Coachella Valley, Lee's Family Forum, 7 p.m.
Saturday, October 17: at Ontario, Toyota Arena, 6 p.m.
Friday, October 23: vs. Tucson, Lee's Family Forum, 7 p.m.
Saturday, October 24: vs. Tucson, Lee's Family Forum, 6 p.m.
Wednesday, October 28: vs. Ontario, Lee's Family Forum, 7 p.m.
Friday, October 30: at Coachella Valley, Acrisure Arena, 7 p.m.
Saturday, October 31: at San Diego, Pechanga Arena, 6 p.m.

November is home heavy too, with games at Lee's Family Forum against San Diego on November 6 and 7, Calgary on November 12 and 14, San Jose on November 18, and Abbotsford on November 25 and on Black Friday, November 27, at 1 p.m. The team says its schedule can change, so check hendersonsilverknights.com before you go.

Most of the schedule is against Pacific Division teams. The team said Henderson plays all nine of its Pacific Division rivals, plus four games each against the Texas Stars and the Iowa Wild from the Central Division, two at home and two on the road. The regular season wraps up on April 10 against the Calgary Wranglers. The back end of the schedule is home heavy too, with 9 of the final 11 games at Lee's Family Forum, according to the team. If Henderson is in a playoff race in the spring, that is a lot of chances for local fans to help.

Henderson Silver Knights 2026-27 regular season schedule graphic showing home and road dates

Three things are worth watching. First, whether Laczynski keeps scoring at last year's pace with Holtz and Rondbjerg. Second, whether Henderson's offense wakes up after being shut out in San Diego. Third, whether the Golden Knights call up any of the three linemates. The team's feature noted that every player on the roster wants to play in the NHL. If Vegas runs into injuries at forward, this line is a likely place to look. Any call-up timing is [NOT VERIFIED] and would be announced by the team.

Ryan's Take

Henderson has built something real around the Silver Knights. An arena with 36 home dates, Kids Day Sundays, and a top scorer locked in on a three-year deal gives the city another reason families pick it. When buyers ask what there is to do in Henderson besides parks and golf, a pro hockey team down the road is a good answer.

Steady draws like this matter for neighborhoods. Restaurants and shops near a busy venue get regular traffic, not just one big weekend a year. That helps keep local businesses open, and a healthy mix of local businesses is part of what makes a neighborhood feel like home. It will not move home prices on its own, but it adds to the quality of life that keeps people in Green Valley, Anthem, Inspirada, and the rest of Henderson for the long haul. A local star who sticks around is a small piece of that, and it is a fun one.

A hockey goal sitting on a clean ice rink before a game, like the setup at Lee's Family Forum in Henderson

What You Can Do

If you have never been to a Silver Knights game, the next home game is Wednesday, October 14, against Coachella Valley at 7 p.m. at Lee's Family Forum. Single-game tickets and plans are sold through the team at hendersonsilverknights.com. Ticket prices for individual games are [NOT VERIFIED] here, so check the team site for current pricing.

If you have kids who play hockey, look up the six Kids Day Sundays on the team's site. Fans 14 and under get a giveaway and can take a slapshot on the ice after the game. The dates were not listed in the schedule release, so the exact Kids Day dates are [NOT VERIFIED] here. Saturday home games start at 6 p.m. and Sunday home games at 5 p.m., which makes them easier for families than a late weeknight game.

And if you just want to follow along, the team posts game recaps and features on its website. Keep an eye on Laczynski's point totals. If he stays healthy, he has a real shot to break the record he tied last season.

Have questions about how this affects your home or neighborhood? Reach out to Ryan Rose or text/call 702-747-5921 anytime.