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Philadelphia Flyers: Nolan Patrick Primed For Breakout Season

By Phyllis Hunter

PHILADELPHIA, PA - APRIL 22: Nolan Patrick #19 of the Philadelphia Flyers skates the puck behind the net against Brian Dumoulin #8 of the Pittsburgh Penguins in Game Six of the Eastern Conference First Round during the 2018 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at the Wells Fargo Center on April 22, 2018 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Len Redkoles/NHLI via Getty Images)
PHILADELPHIA, PA - APRIL 22: Nolan Patrick #19 of the Philadelphia Flyers skates the puck behind the net against Brian Dumoulin #8 of the Pittsburgh Penguins in Game Six of the Eastern Conference First Round during the 2018 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at the Wells Fargo Center on April 22, 2018 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Len Redkoles/NHLI via Getty Images) /
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Could Nolan Patrick of the Philadelphia Flyers be the NHL’s next breakout star?

NHL Network’s Mike Johnson recently his number one Breakout Star for the 2018-19 season. His top spot went to the Philadelphia Flyers exciting young center Nolan Patrick. The announcement came on the Friday, July 20th episode of NHL Tonight.

Patrick was the second overall pick of the 2017 NHL Draft. He made the Flyers squad the same year. His rookie year was hampered by a pre-season surgery and a concussion that cost him nine games. It took longer than the nine games he sat to get back up to speed.

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The 19-year-old Patrick finished the regular season with 13 goals and 17 assists. However, he managed only one goal and one assist during the Flyers short playoff run.

Johnson, who played for 12 seasons in the NHL, noted that Patrick will have a full year’s experience and will come into training camp 100 percent healthy this year.

Patrick joined the “NHL Tonight” broadcast by phone and admitted that he went into training camp slower than he would have liked. This will be the first summer he will be able to hit the gym full force, as he wasn’t able to last summer because of his injuries.

Patrick Slips to the Number Two Pick

Many pundits believe Patrick’s injuries prevented him hm from being the top overall pick in the 2017 draft. Complications from a sports hernia kept him out of the 2017 World Junior Championships.

Despite the injuries, Patrick was ranked as the number one North American Skater by NHL Central Scouting. The Flyers were happy to take him at with the second overall pick after the New Jersey Devils took Nico Hischier with the first overall pick.

Patrick Healthy

Johnson noted that Patrick has a history of injuries and has not been able to train properly. Even with that, the former NHL player was impressed enough with his strength, size and ability to finish the play to chose him to be his number one breakout star for the upcoming NHL season.

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If you are wondering who Johnson chose as the number one breakout for the 2017-18 season, it was Conor McDavid. It appears that Johnson may know a thing or two about up and coming players. Flyers fans are certainly hoping that this is an omen of good fortune for the future.

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