The Vegas Golden Knights announced that they have signed Nolan Patrick to a two-year deal worth $2.4 million. The deal will carry an AAV of $1.2 million and will carry him through the 2022-23 NHL Season.
Closing out his birthday with a new contract!!! 🥳
Nolan Patrick has signed a two-year contract with the Vegas Golden Knights ✍️ #VegasBorn https://t.co/xTA6NeXOvt
— 🏆 – Vegas Golden Knights (@GoldenKnights) September 20, 2021
Nolan Patrick Signed
Nolan Patrick was originally drafted second overall by the Philadelphia Flyers in the 2017 NHL Entry Draft. Despite a difficult final season in Junior where he put up 46 points in just 33 games due to injury, Patrick maintained his position at the top of the draft. A few months later, he cracked the opening night roster for the Flyers. He registered his first point in his third game and his first goal in his fourth game. He finished his rookie season with 30 points in 73 games. Patrick’s sophomore season was very similar, as he compiled 31 points in 72 games.
While preparing for the 2019-2020 season, Patrick began to experience serious headaches which hindered his performance. After being initially tagged as an upper-body injury during camp, he was later diagnosed with a migraine disorder. The issue was believed to be genetic and not related to hockey. He began skating with the team in February in hopes of a return, but the pandemic put an end to the NHL season. He was not on the Flyers “Return to Play” roster in July and thus would finish the season without playing a single game.
Last season, Patrick accepted a one-year qualifying offer worth $874,125. Thankfully, he was healthy enough to open the season with the team. In his first game in 650 days, Patrick scored in an opening night win over the Pittsburgh Penguins. He failed to build on that performance though and finished the season with just nine points in 52 games. On July 17th, the Flyers traded Nolan Patrick and Philippe Myers to the Nashville Predators in exchange for Ryan Ellis. The Predators then flipped Patrick to the Vegas Golden Knights in exchange for Cody Glass.
What This Means Going Forward
Unfortunately, injuries have derailed the progress of Patrick’s young career. After accumulating just 30 goals and 40 assists for 70 points in 197 games, Patrick will look to live up to his draft position in a new situation with the Golden Knights. He will likely skate between Mattias Janmark and Evgenii Dadonov on the third line, giving him two wingers with more than 330 games of NHL experience each. A successful season for Patrick would see him play more than 70 games and somewhere between 30-35 points, as he did when he broke into the league.
