The Guildford Flames continued their midseason roster revamp on Friday [27 October], signing forward Patrick Bajkov to a one-year contract.
The 25-year-old, who started the season with HK Nitra of the Slovak Extraliga, boasts a wealth of professional experience and is set to address a key area of need for the Flames.
“The most glaring area where we have struggled this season is offensively,” explained Guildford head coach Paul Dixon.
“We have had far too many games where we could only muster a goal or two and it simply is not enough to win a lot of hockey games. Patrick is a proven offensive star in the leagues he has played in.”
“Patrick just arrived so we will get him a week of a training in before dropping him into the lineup next weekend, and with luck we will be able to shortly announce another offensively gifted player who will be with us in the not-too-distant future.”
With that in mind, British Ice Hockey reviews Bajkov’s career, provides an overview of his attributes, and forecasts his role with the Flames.
Who is Guildford Flames forward Patrick Bajkov?
Bajkov is well-established as a prolific point producer at the professional level, albeit with an unimpressive stint in Slovakia as the latest entry on his résumé.
The British Columbia-born forward starred while a member of the Western Hockey League’s Everett Silvertips, recording 288 points (112 goals, 176 assists) in 342 major junior appearances.
Bajkov’s form attracted the attention of senior scouts and saw him split his maiden professional season between the American Hockey League’s Springfield Thunderbirds and the Florida Everblades of the ECHL.
The versatile wide forward remained in the third tier for a further three seasons, finishing with 166 points (66 goals, 100 assists) in 221 appearances for Florida, the Manchester Monarchs, Greenville Swamp Rabbits, and Reading Royals.
Bajkov moved overseas for the first time in 2022-23, totalling 25 points (nine goals, 16 assists) in 51 Swedish Allsvenskan appearances for Kristianstads IK and HC Vita Hästen.
The 6-foot skater started this season in Slovakia but went pointless through six appearances for HK Nitra.
Will Patrick Bajkov reignite the Guildford Flames’ attack?
Dixon’s assessment of his struggling attack is correct – the Flames ‘lead’ the Elite League in fewest goals scored (six) and fewest goals scored per game (1.2).
The Flames are winless through their opening five league games and count zero multi-goal scorers on their roster.
If you dig a little deeper, the situation in Surrey is also worse than it initially seems, with the Flames only scoring four times at even strength to start the campaign.
Guildford lost a significant chunk of their offensive firepower in the summer (headlined by the departure of Daniel Tedesco to the Belfast Giants) and it has shown on the ice.
With that in mind, Bajkov is a sensible addition for Dixon.
The Canadian scored 69 points (26 goals, 43 assists) in 71 appearances during his final season in the ECHL, using his stickhandling ability and quick strides to torment opposition bluelines.
While his recent spell in Slovakia ended in failure, the bulk of Bajkov’s history suggests that he will excel in the Elite League.
Where will Patrick Bajkov play in the Guildford Flames’ line-up?
Following the departures of Anthony Petruzzelli and Kobe Roth, the Flames have tried to spread their offensive weapons evenly across three lines, including versus the Cardiff Devils on Wednesday [25 October]:
- Matt Alvaro – Bryan Lemos – Ryan Tait
- Lewis Hook – Brett Ferguson – Peter Crinella
- Ryan Hughes – Logan Fredericks – Turner Ripplinger
- Zak Milton // Samuel Talbot
Bajkov – who can play on either flank – projects as a top-six forward in the Elite League, with the potential to earn additional ice time on the powerplay.
With Alvaro sitting bottom of Guildford’s plus-minus chart, a first-line left wing audition is on the cards for the former Florida Panthers prospect.
