Prospect Info: 2024-25 Flyers Prospects - Top 20 SKATERS, #13

[Alex K]

1. Matvei Michkov 85.9%
2. Oliver Bonk 40.5%
3. Jett Luchanko 78.8%
4. Denver Barkey 77.8%
5. Emil Andrae 42.9%
6. Alex Bump 34.0%
7. Samu Tuomaala 26.5%
8. Massimo Rizzo 44.1%
9. Alex Ciernik 30.2%
10. Ronnie Attard 18.4%
11. Ilya Pautov 29.4%
12. Heikki Ruohonen 32.0%

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[deadhead]

Ciernak had two concussions, Pautov is a late round Russian who was OK in MHL.

Meanwhile Sotheran had a great D+1 season, was one of the top CHL D-men in the playoffs. But he's not a top 10 prospect?

McDonald is harder to judge, the organization loves him, but didn't have enough time in LHV to make a judgment.

Kaplan, who has flatlined in college over Bump and Knuble who showed more as freshman than Kaplan as a sophomore on a loaded team?

Don't sleep on Avon, great speed, filling out his frame, bottom six but could be a top forechecker at the next level.

 

[BiggE]

With Hart gone, we are now embarrassingly short of players named Carter. So, Sotheran gets my vote.

That being said, I’m also ok with Matteo Mann. Alliteration is fun.

 

[FLYguy3911]

If the Flyers were doing the polls, McDonald would've been off the board about 7 polls ago.

Owen McLaughlin probably deserves some consideration at this point.

 

[VladDrag]

Of all the remaining prospects I've seen, McLaughlin has the set of natural hockey skills.

I liked Sotheran as well, but I haven't seen enough of him. Kaplan is potentially a guy -- I didn't see a ton of progress this year, but I stopped watching his games fairly early in the season.

 

[Magua]

It's such a deep prospect pool I get paralysis by analysis. It's crazy how quickly I stopped caring (poll #5?). My biggest takeaway is the Flyers made two 2nd round picks last month and neither look likes a threat to crack the top 15 in this mediocre group. Gill might be the worst skater of all their prospects, and Berglund is below vanilla.

My gut feel is that McLaughlin is a minors guy when it comes to athleticism+physicality, but he's probably the most purely skilled prospect left I've seen. I saw Knuble once and he was forgettably fine. Kaplan needs to make real progress, and his pace can be lacking. All 3 had similar age relative production, and all 3 have their own flaws. If people want to give Desnoyers a mulligan, that's a choice. Not sure how I feel about Sotheran's skating. Powell had good production as an overager, but he didn't exactly wow me in half a game I saw.

 

[Rebels57]

It's such a deep prospect pool I get paralysis by analysis. It's crazy how quickly I stopped caring (poll #5?). My biggest takeaway is the Flyers made two 2nd round picks last month and neither look likes a threat to crack the top 15 in this mediocre group. Gill might be the worst skater of all their prospects, and Berglund is below vanilla.

My gut feel is that McLaughlin is a minors guy when it comes to athleticism+physicality, but he's probably the most purely skilled prospect left I've seen. I saw Knuble once and he was forgettably fine. Kaplan needs to make real progress, and his pace can be lacking. All 3 had similar age relative production, and all 3 have their own flaws. If people want to give Desnoyers a mulligan, that's a choice. Not sure how I feel about Sotheran's skating. Powell had good production as an overager, but he didn't exactly wow me in half a game I saw.

 

[Tripod]

Sniff, sniff...I think I stepped in dog poo.

Oh good....it was just the prospect thread.

 

[dats81]

Seriously, we are well outside the top-10 and there are multiple prospects left that have a realistic chance of playing games in the NHL, maybe even carving out a nice little career. The current situation is so much better than it has been a few years ago.

 

[GapToothedWonder]

Seriously, we are well outside the top-10 and there are multiple prospects left that have a realistic chance of playing games in the NHL, maybe even carving out a nice little career. The current situation is so much better than it has been a few years ago.

I honestly don't know if this is sarcasm or not.

 

[Random Forest]

I honestly don't know if this is sarcasm or not.

There’s an obvious and terrible lack of elite potential in the pool, but I don’t think the depth of the pool is the issue. We’re at #13 for skaters and there are guys that have very plausible paths to being NHL players who have shown relatively promising development since their draft (Sotheran and McLaughlin in particular).

Berglund and Powell are also reasonably decent prospects this far down the list, though they benefit from the rosiness of being recently drafted.

 

[deadhead]

Briere obviously positioned himself for the 2025 draft, now that's a gamble more than a year ahead, but they must really like the top 50 or so, because right now they're probably going to have 6 picks out of that group given the 2nd rd picks are CBJ, Anaheim and Philly.

Between trading forward and the hangover from CF's last years (Risto and TDA trades), the 2024 draft wasn't as deep as it could have been.

But what has really hurt the prospect depth were the 2020-2022 drafts:
no 3rd in 2020, no 1st in 2021, no 2nd/4th picks in 2022, that's missing almost a full draft over 3 years.

Made up for it in 2023 with an extra 1st, 3rd and 4th, but the damage was done.

 

[Appleyard]

There’s an obvious and terrible lack of elite potential in the pool, but I don’t think the depth of the pool is the issue. We’re at #13 for skaters and there are guys that have very plausible paths to being NHL players who have shown relatively promising development since their draft (Sotheran and McLaughlin in particular).

Berglund and Powell are also reasonably decent prospects this far down the list, though they benefit from the rosiness of being recently drafted.

Yeh, when you include goalies too the Flyers have ~20 guys with a "decent" chance of playing in the NHL.

But the top is just very shallow.

2025 hopefully helps... it should... but if they are scared to draft undersized Dmen there too as we already have too many? Kiss goodbye to a good shot at a #1. As 2025 is the draft of the C's and the undersized Dmen who will fall and be great value.

 

[GapToothedWonder]

There’s an obvious and terrible lack of elite potential in the pool, but I don’t think the depth of the pool is the issue. We’re at #13 for skaters and there are guys that have very plausible paths to being NHL players who have shown relatively promising development since their draft (Sotheran and McLaughlin in particular).

Berglund and Powell are also reasonably decent prospects this far down the list, though they benefit from the rosiness of being recently drafted.

Sure, but is

"The current situation is so much better than it has been a few years ago."

That's how I would describe the Flyers draft pool for the last decade. I wouldn't say this is some noticeable improvement on anything.

Really with where they have been drafting the last 5 years and the state of the team if you can't have 10 or so skaters with bottom of the lineup potential you have failed pretty badly.

The fact they have what 4 skaters that project higher in the line up is pretty disappointing.

 

[deadhead]

Yeh, when you include goalies too the Flyers have ~20 guys with a "decent" chance of playing in the NHL.

But the top is just very shallow.

2025 hopefully helps... it should... but if they are scared to draft undersized Dmen there too as we already have too many? Kiss goodbye to a good shot at a #1. As 2025 is the draft of the C's and the undersized Dmen who will fall and be great value.

They drafted York and Andrae and traded for Drysdale. Don't think they have a problem with undersized D-men (Buium isn't undersized, 6'0 and will probably be 200+).

They do like balance, I think they see McDonald as the heir to Seeler as a partner to someone like Drysdale and Bonk/Sotheran to pair with someone like Andrae. Gill should also fill out down the road.

 

[Magua]

"A chance to play NHL games" has to be the most damning with faint praise evaluation. No one actually cares about a player getting a 10-50 game sample in his career. It's a polite way to say, "Fodder." This organization has been drafting for the purpose of fodder, and fodder they have. Ignoring Michkov, I'd set the over/under for this pool -- not just the players remaining -- at 4.5 regular NHLers.

 

[FLYguy3911]

It appears deep on the surface (there's not much difference between #5 and who is on the board now) but most of these guys are recent draftees who haven't had their shine worn off by pro hockey yet.