Stephen R. Sylvanie-USA TODAY Sports

Brayden McNabb Wins Seventh Player Award for Golden Knights

Originally posted on Dice City Sports | By Ryan Brennan | Last updated 4/19/24

Vegas Golden Knights fans voted Brayden McNabb as this year’s recipient of the team’s Seventh Player Award.

The Seventh Player Award recognizes the player whose performance on the ice most exceeded fan expectations this season.

Previous winners include William Carrier (2022-23), Nicolas Roy (2021-22), Alec Martinez (2020-21), Chandler Stephenson (2019-20), Ryan Reaves (2018-19), and William Karlsson (2017-18).

This year, that award is going to Brayden McNabb — and he is more than deserving of it.

NABBER… OUR BRO!

McNabb was voted by fans as the winner of the Seventh Player Award as the player who most exceeded expectations on the ice! The original misfit racked up 26 points this season and led the team and ranked third in the league with 206 blocked shots pic.twitter.com/uACYNbbRhD

— x-Vegas Golden Knights (@GoldenKnights) April 19, 2024

He’s as reliable as it gets in the NHL, appearing in all 82 games for the second consecutive season. Only two other VGK players — Ivan Barbashev and Jonathan Marchessault — played in all 82 games this year.

For a team that saw every other defenseman miss time this season, McNabb was a bit of a security blanket.

But he operated more like a brick wall. His 207 blocks not only led the team, but it set a new career high and ranked third in the NHL.

And he was excellent on offense, too.

His four goals were his most since the 2017-18 season (the Vegas Golden Knights‘ inaugural season). He also tied a career high with 22 assists and set a new career high with 26 points.

BY THE WAY

William Karlsson and Brayden McNabb are playing in their 500th games as Golden Knights today! #VegasBorn pic.twitter.com/jJg24eA7lg

— x-Vegas Golden Knights (@GoldenKnights) April 14, 2024

Not bad for a defenseman.

McNabb and Shea Theodore form one of the best defensive pairings in the league. If the Golden Knights want to make a run at another title, they’ll need this pair to play their best hockey of the season.

The good news is they have Alex Pietrangelo, Noah Hanifin, and Martinez to lighten the load.

This article first appeared on Dice City Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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