Pavel Brendl

Pavel Brendl (born March 23, 1981) is a Czech former professional ice hockey forward who last played for the HKM Zvolen in the Slovak Extraliga. He played in the National Hockey League with the Philadelphia Flyers, Carolina Hurricanes and Phoenix Coyotes.

Playing career Brendl was a highly rated junior star with the Calgary Hitmen of the Western Hockey League, winning numerous awards and making the all-star team of the 1999 Memorial Cup. This led to him being drafted fourth overall in the 1999 NHL entry draft by the New York Rangers. However, Brendl's talent never translated to stardom at the NHL level, where he managed only 22 points in 78 career games with the Philadelphia Flyers, Carolina Hurricanes, and Phoenix Coyotes. On August 20, 2001, he was traded by the Rangers to Philadelphia as part of a package which saw Eric Lindros go to New York.

In 2006, Brendl joined the Swedish Elitserien team Mora IK for which he scored the most goals in the Elitserien during the regular season. After one season with the team he signed a three-year contract with Brynäs IF, also in Elitserien. Brynäs regards the signing of Brendl as one of the club's biggest and most spectacular signings in the recent history of the club. In June, 2008, Brendl signed with the Russian team Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod in the Kontinental Hockey League. In the inaugural season of the KHL, Brendl led the league in scoring with 35 goals (with another Czech forward Jan Marek).

In 2010, Brendl signed with the KalPa of the SM-liiga.

Brendl is often considered to be a notable draft bust due to his high draft selection and his inability to transition his high-scoring junior career to the NHL level. Although compared to Mike Bossy by scouts for his scoring prowess before being drafted, Brendl only scored 11 goals in 78 NHL games. Brendl's lack of work ethic has been cited as a primary reason why his game never transitioned to the NHL level, being considered a "one-dimension" offensive player and not adapting to the exercise or defensive requirements of the league. Following the conclusion of his playing career, Brendl admitted in an essay that coaches treating him as a one-dimensional player who was only capable of playing in offensive situations made him lose motivation in his hockey career shortly after being drafted, and blamed a combination of poor personal decisions and poor coaching on why his NHL career did not work out, but rejects the "bust" label given his lengthy overseas career.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

International Year Team Event Result GP G A Pts PIM 1998 Czech Republic EJC18 4th 6 2 4 6 4 2001 Czech Republic WJC 7 4 6 10 8 Junior totals 13 6 10 16 12

Awards and honors Award Year International World Junior Gold Medal 2001 World Junior Leading Scorer 2001 World Junior Best Plus/Minus 2001 World Junior Best Forward 2001 World Junior All-Star team 2001 Spengler Cup Scoring Leader 2006 Spengler Cup champion (HC Davos) 2011 WHL Ed Chynoweth Cup champion (Calgary Hitmen) 1999 WHL Top Goal Scorer 1999, 2000 Bob Clarke Trophy (Most points) 1999 WHL Plus-Minus Award (Top plus-minus) 1999 Jim Piggott Memorial Trophy (WHL Rookie of the Year) 1999 CHL Rookie of the Year 1999 WHL East First Team All-Star 1999 CHL First All-Star Team 1999 CHL All-Rookie Team 1999 CHL Memorial Cup All-Star Team 1999 CHL Top Prospects Game 1999 CHL Top Draft Prospect Award 1999 WHL East Second Team All-Star 2000 CHL Third All-Star Team 2000 AHL Calder Cup champion (Hartford Wolfpack) 2000 NHL YoungStars Game 2003 Elitserien Hakan Loob Trophy (Most goals) 2007 KHL All-Star Game 2009 Best Sniper 2009

Records Calgary Hitmen's franchise record for goals in a season (1998–99) (73) Calgary Hitmen's franchise record for points in a season (1998–99) (134)