Canucks: Jim Benning should target Flyers’ centre Nolan Patrick

It’s no secret that the Vancouver Canucks will be searching high and low for a new third-line centre this summer. And with Henrik and Daniel Sedin recently having signed on as Special Advisors to the General Manager, addressing this issue is expected to be high on their priority list.

Beyond the dynamic 1-2 punch of Bo Horvat and Elias Pettersson, the Canucks offensive talent down the middle hits a steep drop-off.

Brandon Sutter is an unrestricted free agent who was unable to live up to his $4.375 million AAV. As for other centres in the cupboard, Jay Beagle is nothing more than a fourth-line guy, and UFA’s Tyler Graovac and Travis Boyd are going to have a difficult time moving the needle in the right direction if they are brought back.

Clearly, the Canucks need to bring in some outside reinforcements.

Yes, J.T. Miller could very well fill the position and instantly give the Canucks one of the deadliest triple threat combinations in the league, especially given how he played this past season in the absence of Pettersson. But at the end of the day, moving him away from the ‘Lotto Line’ is just trading one trio for another, and the Canucks are better off maximizing his minutes alongside two of the club’s top players in Pettersson and Brock Boeser.

What Vancouver really needs is to finally separate themselves from the top-six/bottom-six strategy they’ve clung to in the past, and to become a team with scoring ability throughout their lineup. To do that, they need to completely load up their top two lines, while also acquiring a player who can not only play a responsible and effective two-way game, but can also move up the line-up if needed.

Enter Nolan Patrick.

Taken second overall in the 2017 NHL Entry Draft (three spots ahead of Pettersson), Patrick has always had the potential to be a game-changer, yet his path to superstardom has been a bit of a slow burn in Philadephia.

The Winnipeg, Manitoba native hasn’t exactly burst onto the scene as many top-five picks have done before him but, to his credit, he’s had his fair share of ups and downs. Most recently, Patrick was diagnosed with a migraine disorder that forced him to miss the entire 2019-20 season.

Patrick already has three full years in Philly under his belt, but with limited chemistry amongst his teammates and a mediocre 31-point career-high to show for his tenure so far, reports are already starting to leak that Patrick is unhappy within the Flyers organization and is ready for a fresh start elsewhere.

Could the Vancouver Canucks be a possible destination?

The Canucks’ core, which consists of Pettersson, Boeser, Horvat, Miller and Quinn Hughes, is enough to make your mouth water if you’re also a young player in the league, and could be exactly what the 22-year-old needs to get his career back on track.

The real question still remains – do the Flyers see a fitting return on Vancouver’s trade block? If the rumours stand true, could defenceman Nate Schmidt possibly serve as a good starting point in trade negotiations?

A transaction like this would be a tall task for General Manager Jim Benning and co., but he’ll need to be creative if he ever wants to find a long-term fix for the third-line centre role in Vancouver.

What do you think, Canucks Nation? Should the organization kick tires on Nolan Patrick? Make sure to drop a comment below!