Porter Martone headlines another top prospects list for the Flyers, but there are some changes after that.
The NHL season is getting closer with training camp and preseason right around the corner. The long wait of the summer will be over as we shift our attention to the upcoming season. But we're not quite there yet.
We're still in August, the least active month on the hockey calendar. Sure, we had the World Junior Summer Showcase earlier this month, but it's largely been waiting around with the sickos ranking things and reacting to rankings. That, of course, includes prospects.
The Philadelphia Flyers were well-represented in Elite Prospects' Top 100 prospects list last week, and Steven Ellis released his prospect rankings at Daily Faceoff this week.
Porter Martone is always going to find himself toward the top of these lists, but Ellis' rankings of a few other prospects differed from where Elite Prospects had them. That's not too surprising given how close some of these prospects and public lists are, but let's take a look at who else Ellis had in his top 75 prospects across the NHL.
Look out for 2025 NHL re-Drafts in five years. I bet Martone is in the top three. He had arguably the best vision from the 2025 NHL Draft class and has some of the best offensive IQ, too. While his skating might lack and some scouts wish he'd be more physical, everyone agrees that he's one of the smartest players in this draft class. He just understands the game and how to exploit opportunities. Martone will probably need to line up with a play-driving center to continue producing at the next level, but his ability to absolutely dominate with the puck - and impact the offensive zone without it - makes him so lethal. Michigan State is going to be good for his development.
Martone was ranked No. 4 by Elite Prospects, and No. 6 isn't too shabby either for Philadelphia's new top youngster. But it'll be the fact that Zeev Buium is at No. 5 that will upset some Flyers fans.
The sky is the limit for Martone, and it seems like his floor is pretty high as well. Even if he bottoms out, he should be able to be a physical winger on the second line.
Luchanko started the 2024-25 season in the NHL, which was a bit of a surprise. But his excellent training camp was hard to ignore, making the Flyers look so smart for taking him earlier than expected last year. I thought he had a strong showing at the World Juniors, showing some leadership and a developed two-way game. Luchanko has very little to prove with Guelph, so you have to think the Flyers will keep him around again to start the season. Right now, I think the ceiling for Luchanko will be that of a second-line center, but I think his true value will be in the way he does everything so reliably.
One of the more surprising rankings by EP was Luchanko at No. 30, and we see the center down around where some fans think his true value is.
I would personally have Luchanko closer to 30 than 54, given that he didn't look out of place during four NHL games as a freshly-turned 18-year-old, but his upside could be limited unless he improves his ability to find the back of the net. Still, a two-way center is something that all teams need in the middle six.
It felt like we never saw Bonk at his absolute best. It was almost like his puck game just wasn't 100 percent where it needed to be. That being said, there was still so much to love. He reads plays well, covers a lot of space and beats defenders with his hockey sense. At the very least, I think he can be a No. 4 or 5 defenseman for the Flyers - someone who can play a lot of minutes if needed, but also a matchup nightmare if he plays 18-20. If he can clean up his puck play and add a bit more pace, Bonk could end up becoming a big piece of the future.
While Luchanko saw a downgrade in Ellis' rankings from EP, Bonk got almost just as much of an upgrade from 82 (which wouldn't even put him on this top 75 list) to 65. Bonk isn't going to ever be too flashy, but he seems like he can turn into a solid second-pair defenseman at the NHL level.
We'll see how Bonk looks in training camp ahead of his first professional season. There's a non-zero chance that he knocks the door down and forces the Flyers' hand, but he'll more than likely start his pro career in the AHL, which is just fine.
Ellis separated the prospects into his top 75 skaters and top 25 goalies. Elite Prospects also split their lists, but did not have any Flyers goalies (namely, Yegor Zavragin) on their rankings.
Zavragin was one of the better junior-aged goalies in Europe last year, posting solid numbers in the KHL with HK Sochi and SKA St. Petersburg. He was then loaned back to the MHL for the playoffs and put on a clinic with some outstanding performances. Zavragin is a 6-foot-2 goaltender who moves well around the net, and his glove hand is very quick, too. Flyers fans are excited about Zavragin, and rightfully so - especially given the up-and-down nature of Philly's crease in recent years. He's under contract with St. Petersburg until 2027, so there's plenty of time for him to keep pushing for more starts and control his post-to-post movements.
As Ellis writes, Zavragin had a stellar season in the KHL as just a 19-year-old netminder. In fact, he was among the best goaltenders in KHL history for someone his age.
Zavragin went 17-11-3 with a .912 SV% and 2.55 GAA in 37 games for SKA St Petersburg, and 3-3-0 with a .941 SV% and 2.21 GAA in six games while on loan to HK Sochi.
He's still a few years away and just turned 20 years old, but everything is going according to plan for Zavragin as of now. If he stays on this trajectory, it's not out of the question that he becomes a franchise goaltender in Philadelphia.