Brayden Pachal

Brayden Pachal
Brayden Pachal.jpg
Pachal with the Henderson Silver Knights in 2023.
Born (1999-08-23) August 23, 1999 (age 25)
Estevan, Saskatchewan, Canada
Height 6 ft 0 in (183 cm)
Weight 201 lb (91 kg; 14 st 5 lb)
Position Defence
Shoots Right
NHL team
Former teams		 Calgary Flames
Vegas Golden Knights
NHL draft Undrafted
Playing career 2019–present

Brayden Pachal (born August 23, 1999) is a Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman for the Calgary Flames of the National Hockey League (NHL). He previously played for the Vegas Golden Knights, with whom he won the Stanley Cup in 2023.

Playing career

Pachal began in Junior A hockey with the Estevan Bruins of the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League (SJHL), before joining the Victoria Royals of the Western Hockey League (WHL) for the 2015–16 season. Pachal spent a season and a half with Victoria, before being traded to the Prince Albert Raiders during the 2016–17 season.[1] Pachal would then spend the next two seasons with Prince Albert, being named captain of the team ahead of the 2018–19 season;[2] the same year, Pachal would lead the Raiders to their second WHL Championship.

As an undrafted free agent, Pachal was signed to a three-year entry-level contract by the Vegas Golden Knights on September 20, 2019, joining Vegas' then-American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate Chicago Wolves shortly afterward.[3]

On January 20, 2022, in the midst of the 2021–22 season, Pachal was named captain of the Henderson Silver Knights, Vegas' new AHL affiliate.[4] Pachal made his NHL debut with Vegas on March 15, 2022.[5]

As a restricted free agent, Pachal signed a one-year contract extension with Vegas on July 28, 2022.[6] Pachal recorded his first NHL point on December 15, 2022, with a secondary assist on Reilly Smith's empty-net goal against the Chicago Blackhawks.[7] Pachal then made his NHL playoff debut on April 27, 2023, in the series-clinching Game 5 of the Golden Knights' first-round series against the Winnipeg Jets.[8][9] Vegas then went on to win the Stanley Cup Finals; despite Pachal only playing ten regular-season games and one playoff game, the Golden Knights requested an exemption to have Pachal's name engraved on the Stanley Cup alongside the rest of the team.[10]

At the conclusion of his contract, and again as a restricted free agent, Pachal signed a further two-year extension with Vegas on June 28, 2023.[11] After making the Golden Knights' opening-night roster for the 2023–24 season,[12] Pachal scored his first NHL goal on October 12, 2023, against the San Jose Sharks.[13]

After 17 games with Vegas during the 2023–24 season, Pachal was placed on waivers on February 3, 2024, and claimed by the Calgary Flames the following day.[14]

Family

Pachal is a grandson of Vern Pachal, who played for the University of Alberta and at the minor professional level in the early 1950s in the Eastern Hockey League and American Hockey League. His second cousin Clayton Pachal played in the NHL for the Boston Bruins and Colorado Rockies.[15]

Career statistics

Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
2014–15 Estevan Bruins SJHL 3 0 1 1 0 3 1 0 1 2
2015–16 Victoria Royals WHL 40 1 5 6 29 12 0 1 1 8
2016–17 Victoria Royals WHL 35 0 3 3 46 — — — — —
2016–17 Prince Albert Raiders WHL 30 3 9 12 37 — — — — —
2017–18 Prince Albert Raiders WHL 68 7 19 26 100 7 1 3 4 6
2018–19 Prince Albert Raiders WHL 66 15 36 51 113 23 1 7 8 28
2019–20 Chicago Wolves AHL 48 1 9 10 44 — — — — —
2019–20 Fort Wayne Komets ECHL 4 0 2 2 2 — — — — —
2020–21 Henderson Silver Knights AHL 24 2 5 7 16 5 0 2 2 5
2021–22 Henderson Silver Knights AHL 65 2 9 11 90 2 0 0 0 4
2021–22 Vegas Golden Knights NHL 2 0 0 0 0 — — — — —
2022–23 Henderson Silver Knights AHL 55 3 12 15 90 — — — — —
2022–23 Vegas Golden Knights NHL 10 0 2 2 8 1 0 0 0 2
2023–24 Vegas Golden Knights NHL 17 1 0 1 12 — — — — —
2023–24 Calgary Flames NHL 33 1 5 6 39 — — — — —
NHL totals 62 2 7 9 59 1 0 0 0 2

Awards and honours

Award Year
WHL
Champion 2019
East Second All-Star Team 2019
AHL
All-Star Game 2023 [16]
NHL
Stanley Cup champion 2023 [17]

References

  1. ^ "ROYALS COMPLETE TRADE WITH RAIDERS". victoriaroyals.com. Victoria Royals. January 9, 2017. Retrieved February 3, 2022.
  2. ^ Punkari, Lucas (August 24, 2018). "Pachal named Raiders captain". Prince Albert Daily Herald. Retrieved February 3, 2022.
  3. ^ "Golden Knights Sign Defenseman Brayden Pachal To Entry-Level Contract". nhl.com. September 20, 2019. Retrieved February 3, 2022.
  4. ^ "BRAYDEN PACHAL NAMED CAPTAIN OF SILVER KNIGHTS". Henderson Silver Knights. January 20, 2022. Retrieved February 3, 2022.
  5. ^ "Estevan's Brayden Pachal makes NHL debut with the Vegas Golden Knights Tuesday night". sasktoday.com. March 16, 2022. Retrieved March 25, 2022.
  6. ^ "Vegas Golden Knights Sign Defenseman Brayden Pachal to One-Year Contract". NHL.com. July 28, 2022. Retrieved August 23, 2022.
  7. ^ "Vegas Golden Knights - Chicago Blackhawks - December 15, 2022". NHL.com. Retrieved December 15, 2022.
  8. ^ "Winnipeg Jets - Vegas Golden Knights - April 27, 2023". NHL.com. Retrieved April 27, 2023.
  9. ^ "Monumental Firsts: Captain Brayden Pachal's NHL Playoff Debut". Henderson Silver Knights. May 3, 2023. Retrieved May 4, 2023.
  10. ^ "Names Engraved on Stanley Cup". NHL.com. July 7, 2023. Retrieved July 7, 2023.
  11. ^ "VGK Sign Defenseman Brayden Pachal to Two-Year Contract Extension". NHL.com. June 28, 2023. Retrieved June 28, 2023.
  12. ^ Gotz, Ben (October 10, 2023). "Golden Knights begin season with special lineup". Las Vegas Review-Journal. Retrieved October 13, 2023.
  13. ^ Willberg, David (October 13, 2023). "Estevan's Brayden Pachal scores first career NHL goal". SaskToday.ca. Retrieved October 13, 2023.
  14. ^ "Flames Claim Brayden Pachal". Calgary Flames. February 4, 2024.
  15. ^ Matheson, Jim (April 25, 2019). "Raiders captain Brayden Pachal has intangibles NHL teams should like". The Edmonton Journal. Retrieved March 16, 2022.
  16. ^ "Silver Knights Captain Brayden Pachal Named to AHL All-Star Classic". Henderson Silver Knights. January 27, 2023. Retrieved March 28, 2023.
  17. ^ "Golden Knights' Stanley Cup win cements Las Vegas as a big-time sports city". CNBC. June 14, 2023. Retrieved June 14, 2023.
Sporting positions
Preceded by Henderson Silver Knights captain
2022–2023 		Succeeded by