from Mike Sielski of Philly.com,

With Nolan Patrick, it’s difficult to tell where the patience should end and the concern should start. He has played 29 games for the Flyers so far, and he has just two goals, and his ice time dropped during the team’s recent two-game road trip to Florida. He had been averaging 12 minutes this season, but against neither the Panthers nor the Lightning did Patrick play more than 9 1/2 minutes. Is this progress? Especially for the player who was the second overall selection in last year’s NHL draft?

It is easy to find mitigating factors. He underwent two abdominal surgeries during the offseason, and he suffered a concussion in late October, and he is still just 19, and not every highly touted rookie, even one who was a draft’s No. 2 pick, develops at the same rate. Those surgeries and their effect should not be understated. “I try not to think about that too much,” Patrick said at the Flyers’ morning skate Tuesday, before their game against the Penguins. “I don’t want to make excuses for anything. It’s part of the game, and it’s something you have to work through.”

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