I’d like to think I occasionally have something interesting to say about Nevada politics, but you don’t want to hear it.

Democratic gubernatorial candidates Chris Giunchigliani and Steve Sisolak are proving better at running in the mud than Mike Smith on Justify, but you aren’t listening.

The state law that allows elected officials to file an annual financial disclosure form mocks the concept of transparency, but you could not care less.

Metro is recovering from an FBI investigation inside its vice bureau, the local court system bustles with intrigue and the Culinary Union has taken a strike vote, but it will all have to wait.

The Vegas Golden Knights, our Golden Knights, are in the NHL’s Stanley Cup Finals.

Forget that a year ago you didn’t know the Stanley Cup from a sippy cup. Admit that when you first heard the team’s nickname you thought it was one of those Chippendale-style dance shows featuring gyrating Australians with washboard abs.

Until the Golden Knights stormed onto the Strip, the last entertaining show on skates you likely saw in Las Vegas was Nudes on Ice. Fortunately, and unlike some NHL veterans, the girls had all their teeth. The show was pretty much as advertised and made the rounds from the Thunderbird to the Hacienda, the Union Plaza and the Aladdin before the ice melted for good.

Back when I was a sports editor of a local newspaper, I often instructed a staffer to devote up to three inches of copy to NHL coverage. Other than an occasional complaint from a Canadian tourist, subscribers didn’t seem to notice. There weren’t many hockey fans in Southern Nevada, and not even all the sports books took bets on the games.

It took two minutes at Red Rock Casino recently to be reminded that times have really changed. At an official Golden Knights watch party near the pool, fans gathered more than an hour early to check on the game against the Winnipeg Jets on the big screen. They dripped in Golden Knights apparel and represented every corner of Southern Nevada society. Families brought their children. The rabble rousing and cheers grew in intensity. Although I’m sure some tourists took in the scene, everyone I interviewed was a resident.

There were born-and-raised locals such as married couple Kevin and Rose Getler, who admitted they’d never been hockey fans until this season. Now they can’t get enough of their Knights.

As sunbathers stretched out under overcast skies, the Getlers were among the early arrivals for the watch party.

“It’s brought us together,” Kevin said. “Case in point, we went to several viewing parties, and to the T-Mobile party last week, and I’m hugging guys I don’t even know. Of course, that’s when they win. The energy, it definitely brings people together — of all races. I mean I’m hugging Mexicans, I’m hugging blacks. I’m not racist, I just mean it’s bringing people together from all over. Because you’re rooting for a champion, an underdog, a Cinderella. You’re rooting for your own team.”

“It’s our team, it’s Vegas born,” Rose said. “Unfortunately when the October first happened people were devastated. When that shooting occurred, they won and kept winning. The team helped bring us such a sense of community. Now I’m emotional about it.”

The Oct. 1 mass shooting will forever remain the touchstone of the team’s first year. In interview after interview, fans noted the importance of the team’s presence as a bit of welcome relief from the unrelenting sadness of that tragic night.

From a commercial standpoint, everyone has gotten into the act. Television newscasts are reduced to Golden Knights chat fests. The local newspaper has cheered loudest of all.

Casinos, bars, other businesses and politicians are jockeying for position as the ultimate Golden Knights supporters. One favorite scene played out at Costco, where a swarm of fans grabbed team T-shirts by the armload as the clock wound down in Winnipeg. Cheers erupted from the cashier registers to the produce department when the Golden Knights took the lead for good.

Somewhere out there, grim reality awaits. There’s a strong rumor early voting for the 2018 election began Saturday. Races for governor and Congress hang in the balance.

The future of Nevada, forever in crisis, is on the line.

But I know you’re not listening, so for now forget all that.

Go Knights, go.

John L. Smith is an author and longtime Nevada journalist. Contact him at [email protected]. On Twitter: @jlnevadasmith.