Former NHLer Brandon Bochenski wins election in North Dakota

Brandon Bochenski, who played 156 games in the NHL with six different teams, now has a political victory under his belt. The 38-year-old has been elected to the position of Mayor of Grand Forks, North Dakota, defeating incumbent mayor Mike Brown, who had been serving in the position for two decades. Bochenski managed to get 49.62 percent of the vote. Brown, his closest competitor in the race, received 31.81 percent.

“When you put five months of work in, you've got to be excited about this result,” Bochenski told reporters following the election. “I just think the town was ready for a change, and that's the biggest attribute that we brought to it, was the change and the change for the better.”

Bochenski was initially drafted by the Ottawa Senators in 2001 (223rd overall). He played one season with the Sens (split between the NHL and AHL) before being traded to Chicago. Over the course of his career, he also suited up for the Boston Bruins, Anaheim Ducks, Nashville Predators and Tampa Bay Lightning. However, it was the KHL where Bochenski made his biggest impact in hockey. He played eight seasons with Barys Astana and was consistently among the league's top scorers. He announced his retirement from hockey in 2017, but returned for one more season with the team in 2018-19 after skipping the previous year to spend more time with his family. He retired again in 2019 and has been involved in the real estate sector since then.

According to the Grand Forks Herald, Bochenski ran on a platform of beautification and the arts, slashing taxes and growing the workforce and local economy. He garnered the support of many local conservatives and even a letter of support from the Republican Party.

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