Jett Luchanko will not be on the ice for any of the Flyers’ development camp this week.
“He had a little lower body thing going on,” director of player development Riley Armstrong said Monday. “Should be back skating next week, and he’ll be ready for training camp, though.”
The injury is a “lingering” one, Luchanko said, that has impacted him for a “couple of years,” but he declined to go into specifics about the injury or his recovery.
“It’s been dealt with, and I should be good for training on the ice next week,” the young center said. Luchanko missed last year’s development camp and rookie camp with a nagging groin ailment.
He doesn’t expect the injury to impact his offseason training, outside of holding him out of on-ice activities at development camp. This offseason is critical for the Flyers’ 2024 first-round pick, who has aged out of the Ontario Hockey League and will be fighting for a full-time NHL roster spot for the first time on a team with a lot of depth up front.
Luchanko, who turns 20 in August, made the NHL roster out of camp each of the last two seasons, but played just four games each year before getting sent back to the OHL. Including playoffs, he has not logged a point in any of his nine NHL appearances. He tallied seven goals and 43 points in 38 games in juniors last season split between the Guelph Storm and the Brantford Bulldogs.
“We expect a big summer out of him,” general manager Danny Brière told the Inquirer ahead of the draft. Luchanko is an elite skater, but is still looking to develop his all-around offensive game.
Luchanko should be “good to go” to get back in the gym next week, he said. The center said he wants to spend the summer working on “attacking with the puck, using my speed as much as I can.”
Jack Berglund, a second-round pick of the Flyers in 2024, will also miss on-ice activities at development camp.
Berglund’s exclusion is viewed more as precautionary after he played a lot of hockey this year, according to Armstrong. In addition to playing 40-plus professional games in Sweden, the center participated in the World Juniors, World Championships, and had a brief spell in the American Hockey League with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms.
Grebenkin skates
Nikita Grebenkin was a welcome sight on the ice during development camp Tuesday. Grebenkin played 55 games for the Flyers and scored four goals and added 10 assists, serving as a bottom-six spark plug after being acquired the previous season in the Scott Laughton trade. He missed the final months of the season following an upper-body injury in March.
Flyers right wing Nikita Grebenkin skated Tuesday, potentially a positive sign regarding his rehab from an upper-body injury.
Briére said at the end of the Flyers’ season that Grebenkin’s injury could keep him out for the start of next season.
There was no official update on Grebenkin’s health, but seeing him on the ice could be a positive sign for his training camp availability. Grebenkin was also wearing No. 17 on his helmet, possibly his new number after Luchanko, who previously used the number, switched to 77.
Back to school
East Lansing is turning into Little Philadelphia with the number of Flyers prospects moving through that program. Porter Martone played one season at Michigan State last year, becoming one of the school’s highest-ever drafted players and ranking in the top 10 nationally with 50 points.
“Having Porter there was unbelievable,” Flyers prospect and fellow Spartan Shane Vansaghi said. “Right from Day 1, the first day I met him, just the nicest kid, really good teammate, and one of those guys that you just want to have on your team, you want to play for, and really good in the locker room. He fit in really well at Michigan State, and got along with everybody, and I think everyone really liked him.”
Now, fellow Flyers prospect Matthew Gard is also committed to Michigan State, starting in 2027, and said that Martone and Vansaghi’s endorsements of the school’s player development helped him make his decision. Gard said they spoke especially highly of the strength coaches, who Martone is headed back to East Lansing to work with again this summer.
Flyers prospect Jack Nesbitt will be headed to the University of Michigan next season.
There’s no rivalry brewing yet with 2025 first-round pick Jack Nesbitt, who will start at Michigan in the fall, but he’s not ruling it out.
“We’ve been chatting a little bit, no rivalries yet,” Nesbitt joked. “I’m sure when we see who’s going to go farther, I’m sure there’ll be some chirping. We’re good right now, but I’m sure there’ll be something in the future.”
Breakaways
Flyers prospects Carter Amico and Jack Murtagh were selected for the Team USA World Junior Summer Showcase, putting them on the early list of prospects in contention to make the American team for December’s World Juniors in Alberta.
On the eve of free agency, the Flyers agreed to sign one of their depth forwards who could have hit the open market on Wednesday.
No, not the long-speculated Luke Glendening. Carl Grundström has signed a one-year, $1 million deal to stay with the Flyers, the team officially announced Wednesday, a day after The Inquirer had confirmed the deal.
After being acquired from the San Jose Sharks in the deal in which Ryan Ellis’ contract moved in early October (the contract subsequently was traded to the Chicago Blackhawks), Grundström played in 47 games for the Flyers after starting the season with Lehigh Valley of the American Hockey League.
The winger notched 15 points in 19 games for the Phantoms before adding another 13 points (nine goals, four assists) with the Flyers. Grundström was inserted into the lineup in the postseason and had one assist in three games against the eventual Stanley Cup champion Carolina Hurricanes.
Coach Rick Tocchet often lauded Grundström for his speed and puck pressure. He played up and down the lineup but mostly on the fourth line, where he infused a burst of speed. The Flyers traded fellow fourth-liner Garnet Hathaway to the Florida Panthers last week.
After the season ended, Grundström suited up for Sweden at the IIHF men’s World Championships. He played on a line with Flyers prospect center Jack Berglund and had one goal and four points in seven games. Berglund had the secondary assist on his goal. Sweden lost in the quarterfinals to Switzerland, the silver medalists.
During the Olympic break, Denver Barkey headed back to London, Ontario.
Roughly eight months prior, the forward had captained the Ontario Hockey League’s Knights to the Memorial Cup. Now, he wasn’t just a pro hockey player; he was an NHL regular for the Flyers after being called up in December.
So with some time off during the break, Barkey headed back to see his old club. It was there that the generously listed 5-foot-10, 170-pound Barkey met the accurately measured 6-7, 238-pound Maksim Sokolovskii.
“I only watched two games, but obviously he’s a big boy [who] throws his body around,” replied Barkey, who had no idea in February that the two would one day be wearing orange and black together.
“I think he’s got a lot of raw skill. When I watched him, it seemed like he moved really well, moves the puck well for being [6-7] at that age. It’s pretty impressive, and I think he’s got a really high ceiling.”
And that’s the thing: Sokolovskii, whom Flyers assistant general manager Brent Flahr described as a “unicorn” this weekend, does have a high ceiling. In the same breath that many fans and draft prognosticators questioned the Flyers’ moving down to take the Nikita Zadorov comparable, they’ve acknowledged his impressive skating for his size. He is considered a prospect who, while raw, will indeed play in the NHL one day.
“He’s 6-foot-8, and he skates like he’s 5-foot-8,” Mike Taylor, the Atlantic Hockey Academy’s owner and one of Sokolovskii’s coaches two seasons ago, told The Inquirer recently. “… He came here, and I had a skating coach once a month come up and do power skating with our guys, and he does it like with UMass Amherst, and all these other schools.
“And he saw him skate, and he’s like, ‘Oh, my God.’ He couldn’t believe how good his edge work was … for being the size that he is.”
A strong first impression
During the first day of Flyers development camp on Monday, as Sokolovskii towered over the coaching staff and most of his fellow defensemen — 6-5 blueliners Carter Amico and Luke Vlooswyk were the exceptions — the long and lean defenseman looked anything but gangly on the ice.
Are there small tweaks that need to be made? Absolutely.
Director of player development Riley Armstrong said he and Flyers skating instructor Lindsay Tilley noticed he was turning his upper body too much during the skating-only drills, which made him a weaker skater. “When your hips and your shoulders don’t stay in a square, it throws you all off balance,” Armstrong noted.
#Flyers first-round pick Maksim Sokolovskii said “I feel amazing” after putting on logo for just time.
“I think great,” he said of first day at development camp. “Good experience first practice with the pro guys,” Mentioned he hadn’t skated in two weeks. pic.twitter.com/qfXm27fbbO
However, Sokolovskii didn’t really do that during the drills with the puck, as he executed puck retrievals with some deception while keeping his feet moving. It was evident to all in attendance, including the several fans who lined the rink, that there was a smoothness to his skating — even though he had been off the ice for about two weeks.
“I feel amazing,” he said when asked about wearing the Flyers logo for the first time.
And how did day one go? “I think great. Good experience, first practice with the pro guys.”
Sokolovskii doesn’t turn 18 until July 12. He’s still shy and reserved, at least off the ice. But on the ice, it is a different story.
“He’s a big, strong shutdown defenseman with a really good stick and a physical side,” London assistant coach Rick Steadman told The Inquirer during a recent phone interview.
“He likes to play hard. He likes to step up and hit guys, and he’s just that big beast back there that’s going to really protect you defensively.”
It wasn’t always like that.
Defense first
Two years ago, when the Kazakhstan-born, Russia-raised blueliner came to the United States to play at the Atlantic Coast Academy, Taylor recalls that the league was a little beneath Sokolovskii because he was bigger and stronger than everyone else. And because of that, he’d get a lot of penalties.
Maksim Sokolovskii first came to North America as a 16-year-old to play for Atlantic Coast Academy.
Despite spending a lot of time in the penalty box, Sokolovskii still put up big numbers, racking up 34 goals and 84 points in 65 games. His issue was in his own end. “He was taking chances and doing things with us that he wouldn’t do at the next level, because the hockey allowed the level of play,” Taylor said.
When Sokolovskii went to London, things changed.
“I think when I started the year, I tried to play more offensive,” Sokolovskii mentioned Monday. “But they told me you need to play more [in the] defensive zone. … You can play in the NHL if you will play more defensive.”
And that was the focus.
“For us, we like our guys to be able to play D first, so we can trust them out there and get more ice time. So we really did push that a lot,” Steadman said. “And we were trying to get him to create offense from the defense, like he’d poke a puck away on a rush or a big hit turned into transition, trying to get him to do offense that way.
“When he was playing a little younger, because he was so big and he got such a big reach, he could really just push guys out of the way … so we tried to teach him that pro-style game, use your teammates, stay at the blue line, get your shots through to create your offense, not stickhandle through everybody, and try to get as close as you can to the net.”
Sokolovskii worked his way up the lineup. He came in as a seventh or eighth defenseman and was rotating in and out at first. But he “dug in,” according to Steadman, and after Christmas, they opted to trade some players, knowing that he was ready to effectively step into the lineup. He started on the third pair, was scratched a few times, but eventually forced the Knights to keep him in the lineup.
Maksim Sokolovskii (No. 17) tied forward Brooks Rogowski for the tallest players measured at this year’s combine.
It was his games against Brady Martin, the fifth overall pick in last year’s draft, in the playoffs that opened many evaluators’ eyes. Martin, a point-per-game player during the regular season, had five points in the series against London; however, his only goal with Sokolovskii on the ice came on a power play. He shut him down at five-on-five.
“That’s just saying that he got that defense system figured out. He was playing hard, big minutes. He was hitting, playing physical, without taking a penalty, which is pretty amazing for a kid that big, and just never backed down, kept going, and really a key guy that way coming in,” Steadman said of the blueliner.
“And it’s one of those things that translates really well to the NHL is that ability to defend and play against top guys. You always hope that offense will come, but you always need guys to keep that puck out of the net.”
It was Sokolovskii’s progression throughout the season that stood out to the Flyers and enticed them to draft the blueliner. “It seemed every month he just kept getting better and better, and figuring out the game more and more,” Flyers general manager Danny Brière said on Friday.
According to Steadman, that progression was due to a multitude of factors, but none greater than Sokolovskii becoming more comfortable speaking English. It helped him be more confident on and off the ice.
“Things that we take for granted — just asking somebody for something, or like, where do I get this, where’s this in the dressing room, and then on the ice, just even yelling to your partner, ‘I’m open, I’m open,’ or ‘You’re OK, you’re OK,’ or ‘Someone’s coming, move the puck quickly.’ You just don’t have that. You’re just playing purely on and living on your natural ability to just try to figure it out as you go,” Steadman said.
The Flyers have big hopes for Maksim Sokolovskii, whom the team drafted 27th overall in last week’s draft.
“So that’s why I do think he has a good hockey brain to be able to figure it out when you can’t speak; it is pretty amazing. And then his English got better and better, and he understood and could talk to his teammates.
“From the start of the year, couldn’t have a conversation with him as a coach. You try and use Google Translate, [but the] conversations took forever. At the end of the year, you could sit down and just chat away with him, and then have a conversation about anything — his family, hockey, how he’s doing — and he really progressed that way.”
Now, the next step is building up his offense.
Part of the criticism around Sokolovskii’s selection in the first round was his limited production. He had only two goals and eight points in 44 regular-season games and was without a point in five postseason games.
Sokolovskii told The Inquirer at the NHL scouting combine that he wants to keep working on his foot speed. The hope is that it will all translate to offensive improvement.
“A big guy with skates that big, it takes a while to get that quick twitch going, so he’ll keep working on that; that’ll just help with his game and breakouts better,” Steadman said. “And then we talked to him a lot about just getting his shot off quicker. It’s a long way from his head to his hands to the bottom of his stick, and it takes him a long time to get that puck off.
“But if you can get that off quicker, with how hard his shot is … he will beat goalies and be able to score. So he’s just got to get it off as quick as possible, let it touch his stick, get it off, and hopefully, help him create offense that way,”
He does possess a big-time, hard shot that could become a weapon from the blue line. Sokolovskii is excited to work on building his offense — and he may get some time on the power play in London.
“I would probably guess in London next year you’ll probably see him [add offense], once he has the ability to start joining the rush more,” Armstrong said.
“And now they know that he can defend and he’s good at it — you see some of the bone-crushing hits and a couple of fights he was in — I think he’s going to have more space next year. I think guys are going to probably be a little bit more scared of him going into the season, so I think that’s going to open up the offensive side of his game as well. And I’d like to see him throw a couple in the back then as well, add to his toolbox.”
When Danny Brière, Keith Jones, and the Flyers’ “New Era of Orange” regime took over in 2023, they silently targeted the summer of 2026 as the potential turning point for the team’s rebuild.
They did so with an eye on a loaded free agent class headlined by MVP candidates like Connor McDavid, Jack Eichel, and Kirill Kaprizov — not to mention top-of-the-lineup players like Artemi Panarin, Adrian Kempe, Kyle Connor, and Martin Nečas. Fast forward three years, and each of those players has already come off the board via a contract extension or trade, forcing the Flyers to pivot in their so-far elusive quest to land both a No. 1 center and a bona fide power-play quarterback on the blue line.
While they won’t be able to plug those holes via unrestricted free agency once business formally opens on July 1, that doesn’t mean they can’t find creative solutions via trades or even the all-too-infrequent offer-sheet route. With that in mind, here a dozen players the Flyers, who currently have over $33 million available in cap space, could target as they look to build on their momentum from last season and make Philadelphia a destination once again.
1. Zach Werenski
LHD | Columbus | Trade candidate
The Flyers have stated they want to be in the mix when elite players become available, and reports say their interest in Werenski is high. Why wouldn’t it be for a player that just won the Norris Trophy as the league’s best defenseman and is coming off back-to-back 20-goal, 80-point seasons? Werenski, who turns 29 next month, is exactly the type of offensive defenseman and power-play quarterback the Flyers have long lacked, and is signed for two more seasons at a $9.5 million cap hit.
The two questions will be: 1) Would Werenski entertain a move to Philly over other cities that are closer to Stanley Cup contention? and 2) Do the Flyers have the pieces outside of Porter Martone to get him? The Flyers are definitely interested here, and you’d think every player on their roster, aside from Martone, would be available for a player of Werenski’s ilk.
Robertson’s name is out there and he’s looking to get paid after reportedly turning down a $15-million-a-year contract offer from Seattle. While the Flyers are well-stocked on the wing, Robertson, who is coming off a 45-goal, 96-point campaign in Dallas, would immediately jump to the top of the pile and is the type of player you move furniture around for. Dallas hasn’t closed the door on keeping Robertson, but he could also be a trade or offer-sheet candidate. The Flyers have the money to pay him and would be wise to look into a move for the highly skilled and well-rounded winger.
3. Dylan Larkin
C | Detroit | Trade candidate
The Flyers are clearly looking for a No. 1 center, and the speedy perennial 30-goal scorer certainly fits the bill. Larkin, who turns 30 next month and is signed for the next five years at an $8.7 million cap hit, has a full no-move clause and seems hell-bent on choosing his next destination. Detroit GM Steve Yzerman doesn’t seem nearly as inclined to trade Larkin to one of his three preferred destinations — Florida, Vegas, and Minnesota ― so Larkin has reportedly expanded his trade list. If the Flyers are on Larkin’s list, they’d likely be very interested.
Blue Jackets center Adam Fantilli is a restricted free agent. But could someone price out Columbus?
4. Adam Fantilli
C | Columbus | Restricted free agent
If the Flyers are willing to take a swing on an upper-tier offer sheet (more on others later), Fantilli would seem more attainable than Anaheim’s Leo Carlsson or Chicago’s Connor Bedard with a mammoth offer in the $15 million AAV range. Might Columbus still match? Sure, but if the Flyers are serious about finding a young No. 1 center, making a play for Fantilli would be a worthy gamble. Fantilli, who will only be 22 next season, already has a 30-goal season under his belt and possesses an enticing combination of size (6-foot-2, 200 pounds), speed (95th percentile in 22 mph speed bursts), and competitiveness.
Fantilli is almost certainly staying put, especially with Werenski and Kirill Marchenko wanting out of Columbus, but he’d be worth the offer-sheet compensation of four first-round picks over the next five years. The Flyers and Blue Jackets could also work out a deal in place of an offer sheet if that appealed to Columbus.
5. John Carlson
RHD | Carolina | Unrestricted free agent
The oldest player on this list at 36, the New Jersey native is reportedly a target for the Flyers as they try to fix their anemic power play. The idea behind signing Carlson would be paying him a high AAV (likely over $10 million) on a two-year deal to act as the team’s bridge power-play QB. The former Stanley Cup winner can still generate offense (60 points last season in Anaheim) and run a power play, but could the allure of another Cup chase trump the financial incentives Philly could offer? He might not even make it to free agency either, as Carolina acquired his negotiating rights on Saturday and now has a head start on the competition.
Dallas has the aforementioned decision to make with Robertson and is also circling when it comes to Werenski and Larkin. That could make Bourque a prime candidate for an offer sheet. Bourque, 24, has played mostly as a wing on a deep Dallas team but is a natural center who would fit a Flyers need as well as the team’s ideal age range. He’s a highly intelligent offensive player who topped 20 goals last season and has room to grow. A former AHL scoring champ and MVP, an offer sheet for Bourque over $5 million AAV would cost the Flyers first- and third-round picks in 2027. This might be the Flyers’ most realistic shot at a potential top-six center this offseason given Dallas’ cap pinch.
Ottawa Senators center Dylan Cozens would check a lot of boxes for the Flyers if he is available.
7. Dylan Cozens or Shane Pinto
C | Ottawa | Trade candidates
The Flyers have been linked before with Cozens and Pinto, both of whom are 25, and acquiring either would represent an upgrade down the middle. The Sens may not want to move another top forward after having to trade Brady Tkachuk against their will, but the Flyers do possess a player they are reportedly high on in defenseman Rasmus Ristolainen.
The 6-3, 205-pound Cozens, who scored 28 goals last season and is signed for five more years at a bargain $7.1 million, is probably the more attractive of the two given he’s faster (one of the NHL’s fastest per NHL Edge), more physical, and more of a point producer (59 to Pinto’s 46). Pinto, meanwhile, carries a $7.5 million cap hit for the next four years and is an elite defensive center coming off career highs in goals (23) and points (46). How far would Ristolainen and a first-round pick get you in conversations with Ottawa?
Nikishin is a name I didn’t expect to be on this list given he’s not eligible for an offer sheet and arrived in Carolina a year ago with so much hype after a prolific career in Russia’s Kontinental Hockey League. But reports over the weekend have indicated that Carolina is at least taking calls on the 6-4, 216-pound offensive blueliner. Nikishin, 24, figures to be expensive both in terms of trade compensation and his next contract, but he’s the prototype offensive defenseman the Flyers are looking for with his passing vision, skating ability, and booming shot from the point. There are some defensive warts, but the youngster’s upside is immense, not to mention he’s a former teammate and friend of Matvei Michkov’s. He had 11 goals and 33 points, including 10 on the power play, as a rookie.
9. Darnell Nurse
LHD | Edmonton | Trade candidate
Nurse, who is the nephew of former Eagles quarterback Donovan McNabb, might be the NHL’s poster boy for being judged by the numbers on your contract ($9.25 million AAV) and not your on-ice play. The 31-year-old is certainly not a $9 million defenseman, but he is still a solid second-pair guy who blocks shots, eats up minutes, and provides toughness. The Inquirer has reported there is mutual interest between Nurse and the Flyers, with the Flyers on the short list he sent to the Oilers. Sportsnet reports that Nurse has added Pittsburgh and Boston. Nurse only truly makes sense if the Flyers are moving Ristolainen AND Edmonton is willing to retain 25-30% of the rugged blueliner’s salary over the next four seasons.
Seattle Kraken center Shane Wright, a former top-five pick, could be a worthwhile reclamation project.
10. Shane Wright
C | Seattle | Trade candidate
The 2022 fourth-overall pick’s name has been out there in trade rumors, but his value seems to have taken a significant hit following a disappointing 2025-26 season that saw his point total drop from 44 to 27. The Inquirer has learned that Wright isn’t high on the Flyers’ list and that the team has some serious doubts about his ability to stick down the middle in the NHL. Regardless, Wright is still just 22, came up as a center, has draft pedigree, and a year ago had 19 goals and 44 points without top-of-the-lineup deployment.
Could the Flyers circle back to Wright with centers like Robert Thomas, Mason McTavish, and Connor McMichael off the board? They’ve had success with these types of reclamation projects in recent years, even if Wright doesn’t seem an ideal fit on paper. Matty Beniers would represent a more attractive center from a Flyers’ perspective.
11. Teddy Blueger
C | Vancouver | Unrestricted free agent
The Flyers’ fourth line could use some help, particularly after trading Garnet Hathaway last week. Blueger has experience playing under Rick Tocchet in Vancouver, won a Cup with Vegas, and is a solid left-shot defensive center who kills penalties and can provide some secondary scoring. The Flyers seem to be considering bringing back 37-year-old Luke Glendening, but if they don’t, Blueger and right-shots Colton Sissons, Kevin Stenlund, Oskar Sundqvist, and Noel Acciari would all make some sense as 4Cs who kill penalties.
12. Noel Acciari
C | Pittsburgh| Unrestricted free agent
The Flyers’ fourth line could use an infusion of energy, and Acciari brings that in spades. A right-shot center who is excellent in the dot (53.5% since 2022-23), kills penalties, and plays an in-your-face game, he also chipped in 13 goals last season (his fourth double-digit goal campaign). Acciari is older at 34, but he is still someone who empties the tank on every shift and relishes getting under opponents’ skin.
Porter Martone didn’t intentionally wear a Flyers playoff hoodie to the first day of development camp.
“It’s the only Flyers hoodie I have,” Martone joked.
Still, it was a physical expression of just how much has changed for Martone, Denver Barkey, and Alex Bump since the last time they were at development camp 12 months ago.
Last year, none of the three had made their NHL debut. Martone was freshly drafted and off to college, and Barkey and Bump were headed into their first full pro seasons. Now, all three are bona fide NHL regulars who played key roles in the Flyers’ improbable run to the second round of the playoffs.
They don’t even need to be here. Martone’s barely had three weeks of rest, following up his playoff run by playing alongside Sidney Crosby and Macklin Celebrini for Team Canada at the World Championships. But it was important for each to come back to Voorhees, both to work on their skills and to help the next group of prospects along.
“I’m still a young guy here,” Martone said Monday. “I think I could use my learned experiences — and my experience in the playoffs and at the ending stretch there with the Flyers — to help everyone here. I still might be younger than some guys, but I think that’s valuable, to come back here, be a leader, show them what it’s like being a Philadelphia Flyer.”
Winger Porter Martone said Monday it was important to be at development camp to show other youngsters “what it’s like being a Philadelphia Flyer.”
Martone didn’t participate in the skill sessions on the first day, choosing instead to focus on power skating and off-ice workouts. Monday was his first day back on the ice since the World Championships. After camp, he plans to return to East Lansing for a week to train with the strength coaches at Michigan State, and then head home to Ontario before training camp in the fall.
Having guys like Martone, Barkey, and Bump — who know the drills, the facility, and the staff — on hand can be an invaluable resource for the newer members of the organization.
And there’s still plenty for that trio to learn. Martone said he felt like he had to improve at “everything” this summer to become the power forward he wants to be. Barkey agreed, but had a few more specific things he was getting a jump start on at camp.
“The biggest thing for me this summer is putting on a couple extra pounds and working on my first three steps,” Barkey said. “Getting in and out of corners, having the weight and the strength to win battles, and then also having the first three steps to get away from the bigger guys, and have a little bit of space to make plays. I think that’ll be my bread and butter, and it takes time, but definitely working toward that.”
Three of the Flyers’ draft picks, Czech goalies Martin Psohlavec and Marek Sklenička and Finnish defenseman Max Laatikainen, were not able to travel in time for the start of development camp, but they are expected to participate later in camp … Jett Luchanko was not among the players on the ice for the first day of camp. According to Flyers director of player development Riley Armstrong, Luchanko is dealing with a lower-body injury. He is expected to be back skating next week and to be ready for training camp… Assistant general manager Brent Flahr told The Inquirer that Cole Knuble has a good motor. Kind of sounds like Denver Barkey a little bit, no? “I think just growing up, kind of realized that’s the way I’m going to be able to make it, a guy that’s going to go in every battle,” Knuble said. “And I think growing up the emphasis was, not goals or assists, it was always, did you win your 50-50s and did you stick your nose in there. That’s kind of the way I was coached growing up. So yeah, that was just how I’ve always played.” So was it his dad, former Flyers forward Mike Knuble, who taught him that? “Oh, yeah, he used to say if you have 12 eggs in your pockets, they should all be broken.”
The Flyers were required to submit qualifying offers to their restricted free agents by 5 p.m. on Monday.
After the deadline, they announced that they did not provide qualifying offers to forwards Philip Tomasino, Brett Harrison, Tucker Robertson, and Karsen Dorwart, and defensemen Artem Guryev and Christian Kyrou. They will now be unrestricted free agents on July 1.
They gave qualifying offers to forwards Trevor Zegras and Nikita Grebenkin, as well as defensemen Jamie Drysdale and Hunter McDonald. Drysdale, Zegras, and McDonald are eligible for arbitration.
According to Puckpedia, Zegras’ qualifying offer is $5.75 million. It is the same amount as his expiring three-year contract signed in 2023 with the Anaheim Ducks. Drysdale is due $2.3 million, the same as the three-year deal he inked with Anaheim in 2023. Grebenkin’s is $850,000, and McDonald’s is $897,750.
In his first season in Philly, Zegras had 26 goals and 67 points — both were career highs — in 81 regular-season games before adding another six points in 10 playoff games. It was his first playoff experience, as it was for Drysdale, who stepped up his game this past season and had a career high in goals (eight) and tied his career high in points (32). He added two goals and four points in 10 playoff games, scoring the first Flyers playoff goal since 2020.
Grebenkin has not played since late March due to an upper-body injury. “Initially, we thought it was going to be something short, and it just never got better,” Flyers general manager Danny Brière said at his end-of-season press conference. “Now we’re looking at different options for him. So he’s the only one that I would say maybe [he’s not ready for training camp], if it doesn’t improve.” Brière did not have an update when speaking to The Inquirer at the start of June at the NHL scouting combine.
McDonald made his NHL debut this season, skating in the season finale, and registered the secondary assist on Oliver Bonk’s first NHL goal. A rugged blueliner, he had six assists in 65 games for the Phantoms.
“Hunter took a big step last year in his development, and that’s why he played that game late in the season,” Brière told The Inquirer in early June. “I think our coaching staff was really impressed [with] how he took a step forward this year. He put in the work and really elevated his game, earned that NHL game at the end, and he was around the team when we played in the playoffs as well.
“Really exciting to see him have growth to his development. It’s a big summer for him, but we’re excited about him. A big, physical defenseman like that is not easy to find, and we hope he’s going to be one of those guys, eventually. But he’s going to have to beat someone at some point to earn those minutes.”
Tomasino was acquired this past season in a swap that sent Egor Zamula to the Pittsburgh Penguins. He potted 12 goals and 41 points in 52 regular-season games between the two teams’ AHL affiliates. A first-round selection of Nashville in 2019, he has 218 NHL games under his belt.
Traded to the Flyers with Jackson Edward for Alexis Gendron and Massimo Rizzo in March, Harrison had two goals and four points in 12 games with Lehigh Valley. Guryev was part of the deal that sent Ryan Ellis’ contract to the San Jose Sharks, and Christian Kyrou was acquired in a one-for-one, with Samu Tuomaala going to the Dallas Stars.
Dorwart was signed out of Michigan State as a college free agent in March 2025. He skated in five games after inking his entry-level contract, making his NHL debut in Montreal. Last season, he had 10 goals and 24 points in 70 games for the Phantoms.
The Flyers selected six players during the 2026 NHL draft, — three defensemen, two goaltenders, and one forward.
After trading down from No. 21 to No. 27, the Flyers selected Maksim Sokolovskii, a 6-foot-7, 240-pound defenseman from the Ontario Hockey League, with their first-round pick.
The 17-year-old is not expected to play anytime soon in the NHL — he’s returning to the London Knights for the 2026-27 season before playing for the University of Maine the following year.
In the second round, the Flyers selected Western Hockey League defenseman Brek Liske with the 53rd overall pick. The team also added goalies Martin Psohlavec (62nd overall pick) and Marek Sklenička (120th overall pick).
And with their last two picks in the draft, the team selected Minnesota high school standout Kent Sauer (136th overall pick), a 6-foot-3, 202-pound center, and 17-year-old defenseman Max Laatikainen (213th overall pick), the youngest player in this year’s draft class.
Here’s how experts are grading the Flyers’ 2026 NHL draft class …
Flyers general manager Daniel Brière meets with the media after picking defenseman Maksim Sokolovskii with the 27th overall pick in the 2026 NHL draft.
Inquirer: B
We start with our own Flyers writer Jackie Spiegel, who gave the team the highest grade among the outlets listed, although her grade was reflective of only the team’s first-round pick and not the team’s draft as a whole.
“Sokolovskii, who was born in Kazakhstan and grew up in Russia, brings meanness and physicality, and considers himself a shut-down defenseman who likes to hit,” Spiegel wrote. “Daily Faceoff’s Jeff Marek called him the hardest hitter in the draft class. Some have even compared his physicality and nastiness to that of fellow 6-7 blueliner Nikita Zadorov of the Boston Bruins.
“There’s definitely some boom-or-bust volatility with Sokolovskii, but the Flyers hope they have added a massive defenseman who plays playoff-style hockey, can kill plays defensively, and strike fear into opponents with his physicality.”
Maksim Sokolovskii, right, stands with NHL commissioner Gary Bettman, left, after being drafted by the Flyers with the 27th pick in the draft.
ESPN: C+
ESPN made its grades based on “what the teams did with their selections, how they maneuvered the draft board and how much value they gained or left on the board where they picked.”
The Flyers were among six teams to get a C+, ranking alongside the Boston Bruins, Edmonton Oilers, New York Rangers, Ottawa Senators, and Washington Capitals.
“Kudos to the Flyers for trading back, understanding they could be patient and accumulate pick value,” Rachel Kryshak wrote. “They left some value on the board in favor of drafting for organizational fit, but got decent value with the Brek Liske pick. Max Laatikainen is an excellent bet in the seventh round as the youngest player in the draft and a prospect with potential.
“At the end of the day, you need to draft high-end talent to compete. The Flyers passing on upside for players who fit the style their coach wants to play is risky business and certainly costs them some grading points.”
The outlet gave the San Jose Sharks the best grade (an A++), saying they had one of the best first rounds in draft history.
Brek Liske (42) was the Flyers’ second-round choice.
The Athletic: C
The Athletic handed out Cs to 14 different teams, including the Flyers.
“The Flyers went with big, toolsy defenseman Maksim Sokolovskii at 27, who moves incredibly well for his size and plays very hard, although he has no offence,” Corey Pronman wrote. “Defenseman Brek Liske and goalie Martin Psohlavec have chances to play in the NHL. I would guess one regular comes from this class for Philadelphia.”
The lowest grade handed out was a C-, and only five teams received a grade lower than the Flyers: the Vegas Golden Knights, the Tampa Bay Lightning, the Capitals, the Oilers, and the Dallas Stars. The Toronto Maple Leafs topped the list with the only A+ grading.
Bleacher Report gave the Flyers a C for the team’s selection in the 2026 NHL draft grades.
“Maksim Sokolovskii (27th overall) is a 6′7″ defenseman who moves well. The appeal should already be obvious,” Adam Herman wrote. “And he does play as big as he appears. He’s probably the most physical defenseman in the draft. He knocks players over with the ease of a house of cards, and he has the mobility to do it consistently. If he makes it, and that seems fairly likely, there will be few players in the NHL like him.
“I just don’t see too much upside. He isn’t very good with the puck, and while his skating is good for his size, it’s not an active plus. I think the best-case scenario is a No. 4 defenseman who can’t be used in any offensive situations. The Flyers need upside, and Sokolovskii doesn’t provide it. I would have liked this a lot better if it had been 37th overall.”
The Lightning received the worst grade of the draft, getting the only D ranking. Meanwhile, the Sharks received the only A+ grade from the outlet.
Maksim Sokolovskii (No. 17) tied forward Brooks Rogowski for the tallest players measured at this year’s combine.
Yahoo! Sports: C
Yahoo! Sports also gave the Flyers a C, saying that Sokolovskii may not have neither been the best available player at the time nor the best organizational fit.
“Standing at 6-foot-8, weighing 240 pounds, Sokolovskii has drawn comparisons to Nikita Zadorov as a physical, shutdown, defensive defenseman,” Eric Cruikshank wrote. “There’s definitely value in that, but with little upside, it would be a much more justifiable selection in the second round rather than the first. Adding a two-way blueliner in Brek Liske and one of the top goaltending prospects in Martin Psohlavec helps elevate their class, but it was certainly a rough start.”
The Sharks, Maple Leafs, and Vancouver Canucks top the list with an A+ grade.
Sporting News: C-
The Sporting News gave the Flyers the lowest grade on the list when it came to the team’s first-round pick.
“Maksim Sokolovskii is a giant, standing 6-foot-7. He’s a shut-down defender who understands how to use his size to separate his opponents from the puck,” Julian Gaudio wrote. “It does fill a need for the Philadelphia Flyers, as they need size on their blueline, but Sokolovskii is a project and is like five years away from becoming an NHL player.”
The Maple Leafs, Sharks, and Seattle Kraken top the Sporting News’ list with an A+ grade.
“This draft, I’ll be honest with you, there’s layers, and especially early on, our layers got cleaned out quickly. And I’ve never seen it like that before,” he said. “Even as the draft went along, but we were able to move back in the first, and then we’re able to move around and get players we’re happy with, so it worked out fine.”
Maybe that’s it. It was fine.
Yes, it’s too early to tell where this draft will land because 99% of the time, players need time to develop and grow. And there may have been something in the air because while the gambling floor of the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino had people testing their luck with the press of a button on a slot machine, on each spin of the roulette wheel, and every roll of the dice, that appears to have permeated upstairs to the Flyers’ draft room as they selected their next generation in the 2026 NHL draft.
The Black and Orange opted for long-term wait-and-see projects. (They love projects, don’t they?) And, to be fair, they have some time with the past few draft classes finally bearing fruit.
Maksim Sokolovskii, the Flyers’ first-rounder who Flahr called “a unicorn,” is a big, mean defenseman who needs to continue building his defensive game while also trying to add some offense. Goalies Martin Psohlavec and Marek Sklenička looked great at the U18s for Czechia — another Flyers trademark — but are still raw. And second-rounder Brek Liske, probably the best story of the draft, just for the fact that his dad is a diehard Flyers fan, has a solid foundation, but does have to work on his skating — where have we heard that before?
The Flyers were higher than most on Maksim Sokolovskii. They view him as a defensive “unicorn.”
Center KJ Sauer missed most of this past season after tearing his posterior cruciate ligament the year prior and compared his style of play to that of Brady Tkachuk. Flahr said last week the Flyers could add a small, dynamic defenseman — but in the later rounds — and they got Max Laatikainen, a small Finnish defenseman they are hoping still can grow.
Whether they actually see an NHL game is truly a crapshoot anyway. But that’s always the case. In 2020, DobberProspects did a study showing that 60 NHL players from a draft class eventually make it to the NHL, which is less than 27%. TSN director of scouting Craig Button recently told NBC Sports Philadelphia that “approximately 45 players from any draft will play 350 games or more in the NHL.” That’s not a whole lot.
Entering this draft, since Flahr has been at the helm, the Flyers have drafted 50 players. Not counting the two previous classes, although Porter Martone and Jett Luchanko have already played NHL games, 44% have played at least one NHL game. Will this class make it? Who knows.
Now it does feel like they stayed the course and went down the path of previous drafts with a slight twist.
They again drafted for size — even though Flahr said Saturday it wasn’t a focus — with only Laatikainen of the six picks under 6 feet. In the process, they left players like dynamic but risky small defensemen Ryan Lin, Tommy Bleyl, and Xavier Villeneuve on the table in the first round and talented forwards like the Ruck Twins, Jack Hextall, J.P. Hurlbert and Brooks Rogowski.
But Flahr and general manager Danny Brière did stress that players drafted today will not help the team in the near future — so drafting a power-play specialist would not have made the atrocious power play better in the here and now — and they needed goaltending and defensive depth.
It just felt like maybe there were better options?
But who is to know today what tomorrow brings?
Rugged defenseman Maksim Sokolovskii was the second-biggest player drafted this past weekend.
It may be sweltering outside, but there is ice in our future.
Fresh off drafting the next generation, the Flyers will be in action, beginning on Monday and wrapping up with a five-on-five scrimmage Thursday night and a three-on-three tournament Friday morning.
Here’s what you need to know about Flyers’ development camp.
What is the schedule for development camp?
All on-ice sessions are free and open to the public at the Flyers Training Center in Voorhees. There will not be any on-ice activities on July 1, the first day of free agency. Instead, fans can attend an autograph session at The Franklin Institute from 3:30 to 5:30 p.m. A museum ticket is required to attend.
On Tuesday, Team Jones and Team Brière will skate from 4-5 p.m. on the Phantoms and Flyers’ Rinks, respectively. Thursday at 6 p.m. on the Flyers Rink, the two teams will square off. On Friday, a three-on-three tournament will wrap up the week at 10 a.m. on the Class of ‘67 Arena rink.
Who will be attending?
Among the 41 players in attendance, fans will get a chance to see the entire 2026 draft class don Flyers gear for the first time at development camp. But while everyone will be clamoring to see 6-foot-7 defenseman Maksim Sokolovskii, the 27th pick on Friday, there are several familiar faces to get an up-close look at.
Fresh off their first tastes of the NHL — regular season and the playoffs — Porter Martone, Denver Barkey, Alex Bump, and Oliver Bonk will participate in camp.
Centers Jack Berglund and Jett Luchanko will be at camp, but will not participate in on-ice sessions. Berglund has played a lot of hockey this past year between regular season and playoffs for Färjestad BK of the SHL, Sweden’s top men’s league, and World Juniors and World Championships for Sweden.
Ilya Pautov, a member of the 2024 draft class who signed an entry-level contract this spring, will make his development camp debut. He is expected to be playing for Lehigh Valley of the American Hockey League this season.
Of the last five draft classes, the only players still with the organization not attending are Matvei Michkov (2023), Yegor Zavragin (2023), Austin Moline (2024), and Max Westergård (2025). Forward Karsen Dorwart, who was signed as an undrafted college player, will be a restricted free agent on July 1 and is expected to get a qualifying offer by June 29. Every member of the 2026 class will be at development camp.
Forwards: Denver Barkey, Samuel Beauchemin, Jack Berglund,Alex Bump,Alex Čiernik, Christopher Duclair, Grady Deering, Sawyer Dingman, Matthew Gard,Devin Kaplan, Jack Kernan, Cole Knuble, Jett Luchanko,Ryan MacPherson,Porter Martone,Jack Murtagh, Jack Nesbitt, Noah Powell,Nathan Quinn, Heikki Ruohonen, Ilya Pautov, KJ Sauer,Riley Thompson, Shane Vansaghi
Defense: Carter Amico, Oliver Bonk, Matthew Desiderio, Jackson Edward,Spencer Gill, Alonso Gosselin, Leo Gruba, Max Laatikainen, Brek Liske, Maksim Sokolovskii, Riley Steen,Luke Vlooswyk
Goalies: Carson Bjarnason, Mathis Langevin, Martin Psohlavec, Marek Sklenička, Shane Soderwall
Things to keep an eye on
The Flyers have invited 11 players to attend camp this season.
Samuel Beauchemin is a winger who just put up 66 points in 64 games for Rouyn-Noranda of the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League. His father, François Beauchemin, played 903 NHL games, and Samuel played his youth hockey for the Anaheim Jr. Ducks.
Swift Current of the Western Hockey League winger Sawyer Dingman, who was eligible to be drafted this weekend, is the son of former NHLer Chris Dingman. Forward Christopher Duclair, the shortest player in camp at 5-8, is the younger brother of New York Islanders forward Anthony Duclair.
Defenseman Matthew Desiderio is from North Jersey, and his fellow blueliners, Alonso Gosselin, who is 17 and played for Chicoutimi of the QMJHL, and Riley Steen, who played with the Ruck Twins for Medicine Hat of the WHL, were eligible to have been selected in the 2026 draft.
Keeping with the theme of having a tall team, of the 46 players attending camp, only 10 players are under 6 feet tall. The tallest is camp invitee Jack Anderson, a defenseman who stands 6-6. He just wrapped his third season at Lindenwood University and is committed to Michigan Tech in the fall.
Meeting the media over Zoom for the first time after the Flyers called his name in the second round (No. 53), the defenseman was already decked out in a Flyers jersey, and so were at least six of his family members. He joked that the total number at his draft party might even be closer to 30.
Liske’s father is a die-hard Flyers fan and raised his son the same way, so they already had a stack of jerseys at home to celebrate.
“I’ve never heard him yell so loud,” Liske said. “He’s wearing his Flyers jersey, he’s very proud right now. I think he’s a little bit more in awe than I am right now.”
Liske is from Winnipeg, and so is his dad, but he became a Flyers fan in the 1980s watching the Broad Street Bullies, and passed that love on to his kids, even after the Jets returned to Winnipeg in 2011.
“I’ve asked him multiple times, he doesn’t know,” Liske joked when asked how his dad became a fan. “Just when he was younger, I think with the team in the ’80s, the Bullies, he just liked how they played, so no specific reason.”
Liske’s dad even drove an orange Flyers-themed Jeep with a Philly license plate and a Flyers logo tire cover.
Liske’s father may have fallen in love with the Broad Street Bullies, but Liske said his childhood favorite player was Claude Giroux, whose name was on the back of many of the jerseys at Liske’s cabin.
“I was a big Giroux fan, my number was 82, which I flipped around from 28,” Liske said.
His dad was such a huge fan of the Flyers that he made multiple unsuccessful attempts to name Liske after his favorite players.
“If he was a girl, his name would have been Brin or Brindy after Rod Brind’Amour…” said Liske’s father, Lonnie, per the Everett Silvertips. “[Mom] would not agree to the likes of [Rick] Tocchet, [Chris] Pronger, [Bobby] Clarke, or [Peter] Zezel as a middle name. I fought for Brek Tocchet Liske.”
Now, his son will have the opportunity to achieve his lifelong dream of playing in the NHL, and potentially do so while suiting up for their shared favorite team.
