Nolan Patrick was not the first overall pick in the NHL Draft, as many suspected he could be; he had to wait for the second pick instead. There, the Philadelphia Flyers made him their future franchise center on Friday night. It took a remarkable amount of luck for the team to acquire the potential young star, but now they can breathe easy and hope he appears for the NHL club as soon as this upcoming season, a rarity for freshly drafted prospects.
Flyers get their guy
The New Jersey Devils used the first overall pick in Friday night's NHL Draft to select center Nico Hischier.
That opened the door for the Flyers to take someone many considered the best prospect in the draft at No. 2. He's a forward he skates tall at 6-foot-2 and weighs 199 pounds. Patrick was brought in for a physical prior to the draft, which assuaged some of the team's concerns about a prior injury.
He is big and mature, so it's possible that Patrick will earn a spot on the active roster by the time training camp comes to a close. The team will be careful about rushing him along, though, since he's only 18 years old right now. It's the highest the Flyers have picked since 2007, when they took forward James van Riemsdyk with the second overall pick. He has turned out to be a pretty good player, but he was traded to the Toronto Maple Leafs in 2012.
https://us.blastingnews.com/sports/2017/06/nhl-mock-draft-nolan-patrick-does-not-get-picked-first-or-second-overall-001794757.htmlPatrick could be the team's future
Patrick was limited to just 33 games last season due to a couple of sports hernias. He was electric when he was able to take the ice, though, accumulating 20 goals and 46 points in the Western Hockey League.
He claimed that he didn't feel 100% a single time, so imagine what he can do when he feels in tip-top shape. The Flyers will certainly be dreaming of the possibilities for the next four months.
The year before, Patrick racked up a whopping 102 points for the same team in the Western Hockey League. Without his injuries, he almost surely would have been the top pick in the NHL Draft.
His father and two of his uncles played in the NHL, so he has an understanding of what it will take to play at the top level. The Philadelphia Flyers expect nothing less as they attempt to return to Stanley Cup caliber performances.
The Flyers had another first round pick in the NHL Draft on Friday night. Morgan Frost, another center, was taken with the 27th overall pick. He'll likely never play on the same line as Patrick (since they play the same position), but the team will hope they can reach the pros together.
