For the second straight year, Jett Luchanko missed Flyers development camp. And now we know why.
Speaking to the media after the Flyers finished development camp with a spirited three-on-three tournament — won by the team led by Denver Barkey — assistant general manager Brent Flahr revealed that Luchanko had a procedure performed on his core about a month ago.
“It’s been lingering for about a year and a half. It’s been a problem,” Flahr said. “So he’s back. He had it done — I don’t even know the timeline — probably a month ago.
“… He’s working out lots [in the gym], and should be skating within a week, and he’ll be ready to go. It shouldn’t affect him anymore.
“He doesn’t like to make excuses, but at the same time, his speed, skill set; there’s lots there. Hopefully, a full summer to train and train properly this year will really help him build his confidence.”
The expectation is that Luchanko will be ready for training camp in September.
The news comes a few days after director of player development Riley Armstrong said Luchanko “had a little lower-body thing going on.” The next day, Luchanko spoke to the media and said he was feeling and progressing well without revealing the extent of the issue or that he had a procedure. He did confirm it had been lingering.
A first-round pick in the 2024 NHL draft, Luchanko has skated in eight NHL games over the past two seasons after breaking camp with the Flyers each season. He has yet to register a point in the NHL, but counting playoffs, he notched nine assists in 16 games at the end of the 2024-25 season with Lehigh Valley of the American Hockey League. Luchanko made his NHL playoff debut in May, playing Game 4 against the Carolina Hurricanes.
He will officially be a full-time pro this upcoming season.
“We’re excited to see him turn [fully] pro. I think that’s great. … Stability will probably be a good thing for him,” Flyers general manager Danny Brière told The Inquirer at the beginning of June.
“We expect a big summer out of him, and he’s got to get ready. The big thing with Jett is he has an elite skill in skating that is almost unmatched from anyone in the organization, other than maybe Owen Tippett. So that’s always going to have a lot of value for anybody to have a player like that.
“Now it’s our job to try to help him and round out his game to make it in the NHL. But what I would expect is probably for him to play a year in Lehigh Valley.”
Center Jack Berglund, who was drafted in the second round in 2024, also did not participate in on-ice activities at camp this week. He was held off the ice because of how much hockey he has played this year, including 40-plus professional games in Sweden, World Juniors, World Championships, and a five-game stint with the Phantoms.
Barkey played in the three-on-three tournament on the small ice at the ’67 Arena rink at the Flyers Training Center after not participating in the five-on-five scrimmage Thursday night. He wanted to play but had “a little kind of hip flexor,” per Flahr, so he was held out of the full ice scrimmage.
Goalie Martin Psohlavec, one of the Flyers’ second-round picks this past June, sustained an adductor injury during the three-on-three tournament. Flahr doesn’t expect it to be too serious but said they’ll probably keep him in Voorhees for another week. The Czech goalie performed well during the week and held the opposition scoreless during his time in net on Thursday.
Flyers add Foote
The Flyers continued to fill out their roster in Lehigh Valley on Friday, signing 25-year-old winger Nolan Foote to a one-year, two-way contract, according to a league source. Foote will earn $850,000 in the NHL and $300,000 in the minors.
If the name Foote rings a bell, it should. Nolan is the son of longtime NHL defenseman and two-time Stanley Cup champion Adam Foote. The elder Foote, who served as Vancouver’s head coach last season, previously worked as an assistant under Rick Tocchet with the Canucks.
Nolan, a 2019 first-round pick of the Tampa Bay Lightning, has largely played in the AHL since turning pro, amassing 245 games over six seasons. He has played 42 career NHL games, tallying seven goals and 10 points.
Last season with Charlotte of the AHL, Foote had 14 goals and 32 points. He also got into 12 games with the Florida Panthers late in the season and had one goal.
Leave a Reply