Former captain of the Prince Albert Raiders Brayden Pachal takes a picture with a young fan and the Stanley Cup in his hometown of Estevan. (submitted photo/Nolan Kowal)

By Jaryn Vecchio

Lifting Lord Stanley

From Prince Albert Raider to Stanley Cup Champion

Aug 2, 2023 | 12:00 PM

It’s finally sunk in for a former Prince Albert Raider that he’s now a Stanley Cup Champion.

Brayden Pachal won hockey’s greatest trophy with the Vegas Golden Knights nearly two months ago.

He officially got his day with the Cup this past weekend where he shared it with people in his hometown of Estevan.

Pachal told paNOW that’s when it finally hit him that his dream had come true which made it extra hard to give it back.

“You never know if you’re going to see that thing ever again, so you definitely have to make the most of your time with it.”

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Pachal is no stranger to winning. He was the captain of the Raiders when they won the Ed Chynoweth Cup back in 2019.

(Lucas Chudleigh/Apollo Multimedia)

He noted it will always be a special moment for him, however, it’s hard to compare it with winning the Stanley Cup.

“It was a major relief when I got to lift that, but the Stanley Cup is obviously different,” Pachal said. “It’s the coolest trophy in the world and anytime you have a chance to put your hands on it, let alone raise it, it’s pretty special.”

When he won the Cup, some of the first people to reach out were ex-teammates from the winning Raiders team.

“Our group chat is still going on to this day. We talk weekly in it. All the guys were super happy for me, and a few guys got to experience the day with me as well,” Pachal added.

It wasn’t a sure thing that Pachal would get his name on the Cup and a day with it. That’s because he didn’t meet the criteria as a player must play 41 games during the regular season or one game in the Stanley Cup final.

Pachal played 10 games during the regular season and one game in the playoffs, Game 5 against the Winnipeg Jets.

“I don’t even know who pulled the strings to get (my name) on there, but I’m super grateful,” he said.

Moving forward, Pachal’s next goal is to become a full-time member of the Golden Knights. He signed a two-year contract with the team back in June.

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Jaryn.Vecchio@pattisonmedia.com

On Twitter: @princealbertnow