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Patrick

Derik Hamilton / AP

Philadelphia Flyers’ Nolan Patrick is shown during an NHL hockey game against the Boston Bruins, Tuesday, April 6, 2021, in Philadelphia.

The Golden Knights acquired William Karlsson as a throw-in during the expansion draft. Chandler Stephenson came for a fourth-round pick.

Neither of the Golden Knights’ top two centers arrived in Vegas with much fanfare, but transformed into key contributors as the franchise has a knack for turning castoffs into valuable pieces.

They are looking for similar fortunes with center Nolan Patrick, who was acquired from Philadelphia in a swap for Cody Glass last month. A former No. 2 overall pick, Patrick struggled last season, but Vegas hasn’t given up on the idea that the soon-to-be 23-year-old can be an impact player in the NHL. The team heads to training camp next month.

“It obviously wasn’t the year I wanted to have in Philly last year,” Patrick said. “I think a fresh start was the best thing for me. Coming to an organization like Vegas is obviously extremely exciting. For my offseason training, I’m extremely motivated after the season I had. Looking for a bounce-back year. I’ve been doing everything I can to get myself ready for the first game.”

The Golden Knights are not only optimistic about Patrick’s potential, but they might be relying on it. Outside of Karlsson and Stephenson, Vegas doesn’t have a proven top-six center in their organization, though prospect Peyton Krebs is seen as close. If an injury happens to either Karlsson or Stephenson, Vegas will need either Patrick or Krebs to step up.

In his four professional years, Patrick’s NHL production has been hit-or-miss, with a lot more of the latter recently. He had 13 goals and 30 points as a 19-year-old rookie in 2017-18, then turned in a similar season the next year. While point totals in the 30s aren’t what you want from a top prospect, he wasn’t even age 21 and could still equal the lofty expectations.

Instead, Patrick missed all of 2019-20 with a concussion, then returned for a full season last year in which he struggled mightily.

In 52 games with the Flyers, Patrick had four goals and nine points, had a team-worst 24% on-ice goals percentage at even strength (minus-30 rating). According to advanced stats site Evolving Hockey, Patrick was worth minus-2 Goals Above Replacement, and was the second-worst forward in the NHL at 5-on-5.

There are reasons to believe those numbers weren’t as bad as they looked. While the 24% goal rate is near the bottom of the league (just decimal points from being the worst in the NHL), he actually had a positive (50.4%) expected-goals rate. And Flyers goalies didn’t help him much, with a league-worst .865 save percentage when Patrick was on the ice.

Patrick also shot only 4.7%, well below his career average. His shots weren’t going in and based on the 5.2% team shooting percentage with him on the ice, neither were those of his teammates, deflating his potential for goals and assists.

But it was all enough for the Flyers to cut bait with their lottery-winning draft pick. They dealt him as part of a package for defenseman Ryan Ellis with Nashville, who in turn flipped him to Vegas for Glass.

“I’ve seen a lot of him and a lot of goals and a lot of plays when I’m on the side, so it’s going to be nice to have him on our side,” said junior foe and new teammate Brett Howden, acquired by Vegas on the same day as Patrick. “He’s a really special, dynamic player. For Vegas to get him as well, it’s obviously huge for the team.

Patrick will get every chance to succeed in Vegas.

Slotted behind Stephenson and Karlsson on the depth chart, Patrick will likely compete for the role of third-line center with Krebs in camp. Should he win that job, he’ll likely have experienced NHL forwards Mattias Janmark and Evgenii Dadonov on his wings.

If Krebs, or another center, beats him out, Patrick still figures to be involved in the lineup. William Carrier has a seeming lock on the fourth-line left wing, but Patrick and Nicolas Roy could split time as fourth-line center and right wing. Then if an injury happens to a top-six forward, Vegas will likely look to Patrick as one of the replacement options.

The Golden Knights have an exemplary history of turning players other teams didn’t want into roster mainstays. Look no further than the two players ahead of Patrick on the depth chart for proof of that. They’ll get another test this season in a player Philadelphia lost patience with, and once who Vegas may need to look to as an important member of its roster in the middle of the ice.

Article written by #LasVegasSun

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