Philadelphia Flyers: Nolan Patrick hoping for fresh start with Vegas Golden Knights

Less than two weeks ago, I wrote a piece on Philadelphia Flyers center Nolan Patrick, and his future with the organization.

A former Second overall pick of the team in the 2017 NHL Entry Draft, Nolan Patrick had been ranked as the No. 1 Prospect for much of the lead up during the 2016-17 season. In the end, the New Jersey Devils took surprise center Nico Hischier with the first pick, causing Patrick to fall to the Flyers, with quite the set of expectations placed upon him.

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If you had already read my piece discussing his future with the Flyers, you would know he hasn’t exactly lived up to said expectations, though this is mostly for reasons out of his control. Along with some expected difficulties adjusting to the faster pace of the NHL, a migraine disorder caused him to miss the entire 2019-20 season including the playoffs.

While he managed to return for most of 2020-21, it wasn’t without its own bumps in the road, with Patrick posting career lows of four goals, five assists and nine points over 52 games, with a disastrous -30 +/- rating.

My expectations regarding Patrick’s future were that he would be an interesting option for the Expansion Seattle Kraken as a reclamation project of sorts. With the Kraken looking to build through the Draft and wanting some young, unproven talent, I thought that Patrick would be a fine addition considering Philadelphia would’ve most likely left him exposed. Well, consider me surprised, as that wasn’t exactly how things unfolded.

With the NHL’s roster freeze having passed at 3 P.M. on Saturday, the Flyers opted to make use of the limited time remaining in a three-team swap involving the Nashville Predators, Vegas Golden Knights, and at the centerpiece of it all, Patrick. After much speculation regarding potential destinations for the 6-foot-2 pivot, Philadelphia ultimately sent Patrick (and defenseman Philippe Myers) to the Nashville Predators in exchange for defenseman Ryan Ellis. Nashville then in turn sent Patrick to the Vegas Golden Knights in exchange for forward Cody Glass.

Needless to say, there’s quite a lot to unpack from this trade tree but, at the forefront of it, is what this now means for Patrick, and his future in his new home with the Golden Knights. Ellis is certainly an intriguing addition for the Flyers, with the former 11th overall pick having been one of the most dominant defenseman in junior coming out of the OHL. With 24-77-101 totals over 58 games in his final season with the Windsor Spitfires, Ellis has yet to truly live up to those totals in the NHL, partly due to playing under Roman Josi for the entirety of his career thus far.

Following a three-team swap on Saturday, former Philadelphia Flyers prospect Nolan Patrick is hoping for a fresh start with the Vegas Golden Knights.

While his cap hit is steep and long at $6.25 million AAV through 2026-27, the Flyers are likely hoping he can bring some stability that Patrick couldn’t provide. As for the situation in Vegas, I will say that they weren’t a team I was necessarily expecting Patrick to land with, especially considering their immense depth offensively.

Considering their second line of Jonathan Marchessault, William Karlsson and Reilly Smith was once their first line in their inaugural 2017-18 season, it makes me wonder as to where Patrick will slot into their lineup.

At the moment, there aren’t many spots in Vegas’s roster that are open to fluctuation, save their fourth line of Keegan Kolesar, William Carrier, and Tomas Nosek. Even then, all three players are long-time parts of the Golden Knights organization, whether that be in the NHL or AHL, so it seems unlikely Vegas will be willing to give up a spot like that to an unproven player like Patrick.

With that being said, where exactly would Patrick fit in for Vegas, and will it be as an offensive forward or a more defensive one? Well, in my mind, I can’t see Patrick being given a real chance to produce offensively in Vegas, seeing as their top-six is pretty much set in Stone (no pun intended). Given that he’s entering the prime of his career going on 23 years-old, going into this offseason as an RFA at that, it wouldn’t surprise me if Vegas leaned on the more defensive aspects of Patrick’s game going forward, should they ultimately keep him in their lineup.

Patrick’s status as an RFA and former Second overall pick (disregarding the player’s selected after him), still makes him an intriguing option for a number of NHL teams, and its just as likely Vegas would part with him once more in a potential trade with Seattle or any number of other teams. Should he ultimately find a place in Vegas’s lineup however, I feel as though it will be as more of a penalty-killer than a powerplay regular.

Vegas isn’t a team who would be willing or necessarily able to give Patrick ample opportunities to succeed, with their status as one of the NHL’s elite teams. However, GM George McPhee and Head Coach Peter DeBoer have shown an ability to get the most out of more unproven players, even with some regressions from their former top stars.

Whether Patrick falls into that category remains to be seen, but should they opt for a more conservative role, I could still see Patrick contributing as a talented two-way, defensive center a la Valerie Nicushkin or Pierre-Edouard Bellemare. With his decent frame and solid checking abilities, Patrick could develop into a defensive threat under the right team and situation, and I feel as though Vegas has all the tools to make him that, even if it might suffocate his offensive potential in the process.

As the Seattle Kraken Expansion Draft looms closer and closer, many NHL teams are already getting their trade fix underway, and as quickly as I discussed the many what-ifs of Nolan Patrick, so too has his inevitable shift to a new organization, and hopefully, a fresh start for this former Second overall pick.