Patrick Thoresen Patrick Thoresen ( born November 7 , 1983 ) is a Norwegian professional ice hockey left winger who plays for SKA Saint Petersburg of the Kontinental Hockey League ( KHL ) . He resides in Hamar , Norway , where he grew up , during the off season . He has a younger brother , Steffen who ' s also an ice hockey player . His father Petter was one of Norway ' s most notable players who played at five Olympic Winter Games ( 1980 - 1994 ) . Thoresen would follow in his father ' s footsteps and play in the Winter Olympics in Vancouver 2010 . Playing career . Thoresen started his career with his hometown Storhamar Dragons before he shifted to Canada and played junior hockey for two teams in the QMJHL ; the Moncton Wildcats , and the Baie - Comeau Drakkar . In the 2002 – 03 season , while a member of the Drakkar , he had 108 points in 71 games played , good enough for second in team scoring . His 75 assists that season were best in the QMJHL . This was a vast improvement from his first year of junior in which he compiled 73 points in 60 games played . His first year of pro hockey in the Elitserien was a learning year for him in which most of his time was spent with the Division 2 team , Mörrums GoIS IK . He worked hard down there and put up 41 points in 38 games and eventually found himself back among the Swedish elite . He then spent the next two years playing for Djurgården full time , playing a total of 80 games and collecting 53 points , 27 of them being goals . On May 31 , 2006 , Thoresen signed a contract with the Oilers as a free agent . He was somewhat of a major surprise in training camp before the 2006 – 07 season , and played well enough for Oilers coach Craig MacTavish to publicly state that he had earned a spot on the roster . Thoresen became only the fifth player from Norway to play a game in the NHL , the others being Bjørn Skaare , Anders Myrvold , Espen Knutsen , and Ole - Kristian Tollefsen . In fact Thoresen was the first Norwegian NHL ' er not previously drafted . Thoresen scored his first NHL goal on October 12 , 2006 against the San Jose Sharks ( Evgeni Nabokov ) . He tallied four goals ( including two game winners ) and notched 12 assists in 68 games during his rookie campaign . He was a - 1 , among the best of the Oilers regulars that season . On February 22 , 2008 , Thoresen was claimed off waivers by the Philadelphia Flyers . On April 11 , 2008 , Thoresen was hit in the groin by a Mike Green slapshot during a playoff game against the Capitals . Thoresen was taken off the ice and driven to a local hospital . He returned to action later in the playoffs , after becoming the first Norwegian born player to take part in NHL postseason play . On July 14 , 2008 , Thoresen signed a one - year contract with HC Lugano of the Swiss League . He finished the season totaling 63 points in 48 games , good for third overall in the NLA . On May 21 , 2009 , Thoresen signed a two - year contract with Salavat Yulaev Ufa of the Kontinental Hockey League . He finished the regular season with 57 points in 56 games , sixth overall in the entire KHL . He also lead all players in the plus / minus category with + 45 ( the previous season best was Alexei Tereshchenko with + 41 ) . He scored seven game winning goals ( 2nd overall ) , including four consecutive game - winning goals to end the regular season . During the offseason of 2010 he opted out of his current contract with Salavat Yulaev , seeking a new NHL contract but after failing to do so , he decided to stay with Salavat for another season . Thoresen ended the 2010 / 11 KHL regular season as second overall in point scoring ( 65 ) , second in goals scored ( 29 ) and third in assists ( 36 ) . During the playoffs he amassed a total of 18 points en route to winning the Gagarin Cup , as the first Norwegian ever . His three goals and fifteen assists was tied with Alexander Radulov for the team lead in points and fourth overall in the KHL . Thoresen is a two - time nominee for the Norwegian team sports athlete of the year award ( Idrettsgallaen - 2009 and 2010 ) . International career . Thoresen has represented his country of Norway on the Norwegian national team numerous times . His first experience came at the IIHF World U18 Championship in 2000 and 2001 . He played in the World Junior Championships ( division 1 ) in 2001 and 2002 . In 2002 , he posted excellent numbers : four goals and four assists in five games . He culminated in representing the men ' s team in the World Championships in 2006 and 2007 , picking up a goal and four assists in the six games in 2007 . He was selected to represent Team Norway at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver , Canada , in which he had an impressive tournament and tallied five assists in four games . At the 2010 World Championships in Germany he notched six points in six games and led all players in scoring after the preliminary round .