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LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – SEPTEMBER 09: Mitch Marner #93 of the Vegas Golden Knights is recorded by TNT during the NHL/NHLPA North American Player Media Tour at City National Arena on September 09, 2026 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
Mitch Marner is starting to feel at home in Las Vegas.
He’s just about to get his second season underway with the Vegas Golden Knights after departing the Toronto Maple Leafs, and a new local fundraiser shows an adorable side of Marner that will be an ongoing factor throughout the 2026-27 NHL season.
Wait, adorable? Yes, adorable.
Marner is raising funds for dogs and their meals.
Mitch Marner Dog Funraiser
Marner recently visited Nevada SPCA, which was the original no-kill animal shelter in Southern Nevada, according to Fox 5 Vegas.
Marner has a partnership this season that’s related to man’s best friend. His Marner Assist Foundation has partnered with Nulo (a pet food company), which will donate 100 pet meals for every point Marner gets this season for the Golden Knights.
The name of the cause: Points for Paws.
“So if he’s hitting his 80 points from last year, we got 8,000 meals to donate,” said Nulo’s vice president, James Torres Dubina, via Fox 5 Vegas. “If he does what I think he’s going to do, that’s going to be 100 or more. We’re going to exceed 10,000 meals that we could donate to the local Nevada SPCA.”
Marner is undertaking a cause that certainly has big need.
“We are really in a crisis right now with people being able to afford their pets,” said Nevada SPCA executive director Lori Heeren, via Fox 5 Vegas. “And Nevada SPCA has committed to not only being a safety net for pets that are given up by their owners, that are homeless, but our real objective is to keep pets in homes with the families who love them. So, when we get support for free food like this that we, in turn, can use to help keep those pets with families, it is so impactful and so important. In addition to the donation, we’re just so grateful that somebody of Mitch’s esteem in this community recognizes the need for support for animal welfare in Las Vegas.”
Why This Cause for Mitch Marner
Marner spoke in that story by Fox 5 Vegas about why he wanted to do this at the shelter:
“Just seeing all the different animals throughout here and how many they take care of, having their own vet clinic in the back, it’s phenomenal. It’s just something super cool to kind of see with your own eyes and I think everyone should come and experience it for, you know, once in your life.”
Marner has been partnered in various ways with Nulo for two years.
“Yeah, well, we wanted to do something last year, but we didn’t really know what to do,” Marner said. “You know, like we were saying, that I have a serious love for pets. I’ve been super grateful that Nulo, you know, has been with us now for two years or so. And started talking to them about, you know, what we could do and we wanted to help something, you know, obviously, there’s a lot of places that are in need of food, in need of, you know, just getting the right resources. As soon as we heard about this place, we fell in love with it.”
If you’re just here to see Marner with some pets, here’s the video you need:
Mitch Marner is giving back to Las Vegas and its pets.
In partnership with the Marner Assist Foundation @NuloPetFood will be donating 100 pet meals to @NevadaSPCA for every point Marner records this season for the VGK
Full story tonight @FOX5Vegas 10p@Marner93 | #VegasBorn pic.twitter.com/VygjXrW3Tk
— Vince Sapienza (@VinceSapienza) September 26, 2026
The season is just about here, and Marner has a great reason to end up with a huge points season for the Golden Knights.
Billy Heyen Billy Heyen is a Heavy contributor with focus on the NFL and MLB. He is a 2019 graduate of Syracuse University who spent his senior year following Jim Boeheim’s basketball team around the country. His reporting work has also included extensive work for The Sporting News, the Sandusky Register and Rochester’s Democrat & Chronicle. Adventures in sports writing have also led to in-person coverage of the Buffalo Sabres, Cleveland Guardians, U.S. men’s national soccer team and a variety of minor league baseball stories. More about Billy Heyen