Coming to the Savannah Ghost Pirates for their first-ever season as a franchise in the ECHL was Brandon Estes from Richardson, Texas. The 26-year-old defenseman had a fantastic year playing in the inaugural season for Ghost Pirates. He also spent some time with the Henderson Silver Knights in the AHL. However, that was not his first rodeo. He played five seasons at Union College in the NCAA from 2017-18 to the 2021-22 season. Estes would finish out his last season for Union by playing ten games with the AHL’s Tucson Roadrunners.
Estes played a total of 146 games for Union College. However, he didn’t play at all during the 2020-21 season. He scored a total of 16 goals and assisted 49. Brandon also managed to rack up 62 total penalty minutes in those four years of playing in the NCAA.
During his time in the AHL, Estes played ten games with the Tucson Roadrunners, earning himself three assists and a plus/minus score of four. During his four games played this past season with the Henderson Silver Knights, he got himself four total penalty minutes.
Playing 62 games in Savannah this year with the Ghost Pirates, Estes managed to make a great first impression on the Hostess City. He scored nine goals and assisted 15, giving him a total of 24 points. He took a total of 115 shots on goal and scored one game-winning goal, one power play goal, one short-handed goal, and once on an empty net. He also spent 16 total minutes in the sin bin.
Estes will be returning to Savannah for the 2023-24 season and will, without a doubt, keep playing just as amazing as he has been, if not more so. His experience in the NCAA and AHL has really allowed him to grow, as well as his time in Savannah. His skill will definitely keep getting stronger and better throughout this coming season, with the Ghost Pirates in their second season.
