The Philadelphia Flyers had a string of good luck on Saturday April 29, 2017. They moved up 11 slots to the 2nd overall pick in the 2017 NHL Draft, and drafted a stud in Nolan Patrick. This was a life changing turn of events for this proud franchise. Patrick was a beast in Junior hockey while playing for the Brandon Wheat Kings. He razzled and dazzled opponents, and torched opposing Goaltenders on a nightly basis when he was healthy.
Following his last two off-seasons of soft training due to two sports hernia procedures in both off-seasons. Patrick finally had a full off-season where he could train as hard as he wanted to. After the first day of Training Camp, Patrick leaves little doubt why he wouldn’t continue his success from the latter parts of the 2017-18 season, in which he tallied 17 points in his final 25 games of the Regular Season. There’s a reason he was voted by the NHL Network as the #1 breakout player for the 2018-19 campaign.
Patrick finished the year on a high. Potting 13 goals on the season, as it was clear he gained more confidence as the season wore on. Moreover, it became clearer that he became more healthy as the season progressed.
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“It was nice not to have limitations,” Patrick said when referencing an off-season being 100% healthy. “It was fun to be able to work out and do everything I wanted to do, so it was a good summer.” In short, absolutely Kevin. He is willing to do whatever the coaching staff asks of him. Patrick is ready to go, and so were his linemates JVR and Voracek on Friday. After just one skate as a line, “It was as much chemistry as you can have for one skate together,” Patrick said.
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This young stud in Patrick was flying all over the ice yesterday. He looks more composed, stronger, and faster than last year. Patrick was one of the fastest skaters on the ice yesterday, and that cannot be taken with a grain of salt.
Head coach Dave Hakstol loved what he saw in Patrick yesterday, “I liked what it looked like today. We’ll leave that group together again, and then probably split things up when we go into some exhibition games. We’ll see how that develops, but I wanted to see that right away. We think that group has a chance to be together three weeks from now so let’s give it an early look.”
This is great news as Patrick looks to do whatever the coaching staff asks of him. For starters, building chemistry with JVR, Voracek, and himself as a unit is a telling sign that the Flyers top brass believe highly in this young kid. One thing is certain Flyers fans, the future is bright in Flyer land.
Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports
