Calgary Flames claim defender Brayden Pachal off waivers from Vegas

The Calgary Flames have a new player on their roster, and he’s a bit of a familiar face. Per multiple reports, the Flames have claimed defenceman Brayden Pachal off waivers from the Vegas Golden Knights.

Pachal is a 24-year-old right shot defender, originally from Estevan, Saskatchewan. He’s under contract with a $775,000 cap hit through the 2024-25 season – this rest of this season and one more. He has one goal in 17 NHL games this season with Vegas.

A product of the Western Hockey League, Pachal played his junior with the Victoria Royals and Prince Albert Raiders, and he attended Flames summer development and fall prospect camp in 2018. He captained the Raiders to a WHL Championship in 2018-19 and then signed an entry-level deal with Vegas in the fall.

Now in his fifth pro season, Pachal served as captain in Henderson of the AHL in 2021-22 and 2022-23. He bounced between the AHL and NHL for the last few seasons, but was with the Golden Knights for their playoff run to the Stanley Cup last spring – he was engraved on the Cup, but only played in one playoff game. He spent the entirety of 2023-24 healthy and on the Golden Knights’ active roster, but he served primarily as their seventh defender. If nothing else, he’ll have a shot at a bigger role with the Flames – especially as they potentially move some veteran pending UFA defenders elsewhere.

So far in his pro career, Pachal has 3 points in 29 NHL games, 43 points in 192 AHL games, and 2 points in 4 ECHL games.

The Flames are now carrying 21 players on their active roster: two goaltenders, eight defencemen and 11 forwards. (This includes A.J. Greer, who’s out for awhile with a broken foot.)