Golden Knights confirm the worst for forward Nolan Patrick

Vegas Golden Knights GM Kelly McCrimmon has confirmed that forward Nolan Patrick will not play this upcoming season due to ongoing migraine issues and post-concussion symptoms.

The 24 year old former 2nd overall pick (2017 NHL Entry Draft) was limited to just 25 games last season due to injury and there has been some talk recently on the rumor scene that he is considering retirement. 

From Elliotte Friedman on the 32 Thoughts podcast earlier this offseason:

I had heard a rumor in the summer that Nolan Patrick was going to retire and I was told that’s not the case. Nolan Patrick has a salary for this year of $1.2 million, so there’s no point in him retiring as he has a salary to collect. I don’t really want to editorialize other than I wish him the best, but I think there are a lot of people who would be surprised to see him play this year, and they wonder about his future as well. Hopefully, everything works out for him.

- Elliotte Friedman

McCrimmon has denied that Patrick is retiring, but he did reiterate that there has been no progress in his recovery from injury. 

I talked to Nolan a couple of weeks ago and there’s no significant progress. He’s got a couple of things that they are working with our medical team they are going to look at doing to hopefully move this along. When these injuries linger you really have to boil it down to just life stuff. Just get to the point where everyday life starts to feel normal again. Then, when you get to that point you can talk about what lies ahead. I think right now focusing on hockey is putting the cart ahead of the horse. Some stability with day-to-day is what we are shooting for first and then we’ll see what happens after that.

- Kelly McCrimmon

That quote from McCrimmon dates back to July and with today's news it's clear that there's been no improvement in Patrick's health. Which, hockey aside, is devastating for the young man. He's just 24 years old, he's worked hard his entire life to make it to the NHL, he works hard, he trains and he becomes the 2nd overall pick in the NHL Draft. He's on his way to accomplishing his dreams and then he ends up with a scrambled brain and just 222 NHL games on his resume. You've got to feel for the kid. Here's hoping that he can make a full recovery and move on to live a normal, healthy life in whatever fashion he so chooses. Get well, kid.