Photo Credit: Philadelphia Flyers and BSB

With preseason games now upon us, we are finally getting the chance to witness the fruits of the Flyers General Manager Danny Briere’s labor. And I don’t know about you, but I have not been disappointed.

Take, for instance, the play of the Flyers 2023 seventh overall pick Matvei Michkov and their 2024 13th overall pick Jett Luchanko in Sunday’s 6-2 victory against the Washington Capitals. Both managed to tally two assists each in the game, not to mention creating multiple scoring chances of their own. But it should be noted that their play went so much more beyond just what was able to be transcribed on the score sheet. For instance, it seemed as though each and every time that this pair stepped on the ice, they were creating havoc for the other team. From Jett’s unmatchable speed to Matvei’s majestic work behind the net, these two young men not only were able to impress their coaches and fans alike with their performance, but they were actually able to make the performance of others who were lucky enough to play with them better.

So much so, in fact, that they were able to yield the often-overhyped Morgan Frost to appear as though he was an NHL Superstar out there. They did so by helping Frosty attain two goals and one assist for three points. They also aided Joel Farabee in his efforts to total an impressive one goal and three assists on the night, not to mention the fact that they were able to elevate Bobby Brink’s game to the point that he was able to accumulate two goals of his own during regulation on Sunday.

This got me thinking: with this duo already beginning to show us “A Glimpse of What’s to Come” for the Flyers, who else may still be on their way for the Orange and Black?

By now, it is well known that “Dealing Danny” has been busy trying to right all the wrongs done by his less-than-admirable predecessor, Chuck Fletcher. But few may really know just how well Briere might have already set both himself and this franchise up for the future. For example, if you look ahead to the 2025 NHL Entry Draft, you’ll see that Danny has already managed to potentially stockpile three first-round picks and three second-round picks for next summer. So, let’s take a look at some of the players that they could obtain with these picks, shall we?

Despite the team now essentially operating as if they are in an accelerated rebuild mode thanks to their star prospect Matvei Michkov surprisingly being able to get out of his KHL contract a few years early, they most likely will still find themselves utilizing their own first-round pick to make their teams initial selection of the 2025 Draft.

Flyers 1st Round Pick

And with that pick, I think that Philadelphia should look to draft the towering 6’5, 190-pound center Roger McQueen from the Western Hockey Leagues (WHL’s) Brandon Wheat Kings. This pick makes a lot of sense if you think about it. The Flyers GM has already expressed the want and need to upgrade his team down the middle of the ice, and what better way to do that than drafting a punishing offensive threat that they most likely already fell in love with last season when they were attending the Wheat Kings Games to see how their 2023 second round pick goalie Carson Bjarnason was progressing.

But who could blame them? Roger is a unique physical specimen who can indeed deliver crushing, blows and add a net-front presence like no other. But at the same time, Roger can surprisingly skate and stick handle with the speed and grace that you usually expect from a much smaller finesse guy.

To prove this, all you have to do is look at his stats from last season, where McQueen was able to total a near point per game in his draft minus one season, netting 21 goals and 31 assists for 51 points in 53 games played.

A feat that he looks more than capable of topping this season, seeing that he was able to post seven points in five games played for Team Canada on their way to winning a Gold Medal at the Hlinka Gretzky Cup. Not to mention, him being able to net four goals and two assists for six points in just the first two games played this season for the Wheat Kings.

Colorado’s 1st Round pick

The following selection came when Danny Briere so wisely decided to trade veteran defenseman Sean Walker to the Colorado Avalanche at last years deadline for the AV’s own first-round pick in 2025.

Therefore, with this selection, I’m hoping that defenseman Kashawn Aitcheson from the Barrie Colts of the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) will fall a little. My thought behind this is that since the 2024 Draft was filled with so many great defenders, multiple teams couldn’t help but spend their first-round pick on them. Thus hopefully negating the need for them to do so again this year.

Aitcheson, who stands at 6’1 and 198 pounds, is a left-hand shot with a nasty disposition. An old-school defenseman, if you will, who is equally willing to clear the porch for his goalie or drop the gloves to come to the aid of a fellow teammate. But Kashawn is more than just some on-ice bouncer. He is a minute eater! One that you can put out there on the Power Play, the Penalty Kill, or during just regular five-on-five play. And in order to be that trusted, Aitcheson had to prove he could be mobile. And to this point he’s done just that. Reacting to a teammate’s turnover in the blink of an eye, Kashawn has proven time and time again that he must have taken many power skating classes over the years because he can transition from a forward motion to a backward motion with ease.

Edmonton’s Conditional 1st

This pick was acquired by Briere in Vegas during the first round of the 2024 Draft when he decided to trade away the 1st round pick that they received from the Florida Panthers when the Flyers dealt them Claude Giroux. But it has not yet been determined whether the Flyers will be granted the Oilers 1st round pick this year or the one in 2026.

However, if it does happen to be this year, I would find it difficult for Danny to pass up the chance to draft fellow Quebec Native Justin Carbonneau at the tail end of the first round.

Justin is a 6’1, 190-pound, speedy, playmaking right winger whose puck-handling ability makes him seem unstoppable most nights. A statement that most goalies playing in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League last year found to be true since Carbonneau was able to score so frequently last season that most netminders in the league should probably have been tested this off-season to see if they now have epilepsy given the fact that Justin made that red goal light come on so often. Case in point: last year, while playing for the Blainville-Boisbriand Armada, Carbonneau was responsible for scoring 31 goals and 28 assists for a total of 59 points in 68 games played.

However, the reason why this talented player might be drafted so late is his lack of defensive ability. Despite him scoring 59 points on the season, Justin should, at least for now, be considered ineffective because he was on the ice last season when the other team scored 60 goals which resulted in him finishing the year a -1. Never fear, though, because defense can be taught, and that’s a good thing considering this season Carbonneau has already managed to amass 5 points in just two games but still is somehow rated as a 0 or even in terms of plus-minus rating.

Conditional 2nd Round pick from Columbus

In the second round next summer, the Flyers are bound to be picking early and often, given the fact that their first selection in the second round will probably be the one that they garnered from the Blue Jackets in a trade where the Flyers sent defenseman Ivan Provorov packing. This pick was a conditional one, but after the Blue Jackets chose to retain their second-round pick last year, they will now be forced to give up this year’s second-rounder to the Flyers.

In saying that, I think that the Flyers should take this opportunity to snatch up a player who I believe might fall to the second round, not because he is not skilled enough to be a first-round talent but rather for his total lack of size.

His name is Cameron Schmidt, and in addition to being probably one of the fastest players in this upcoming draft class, he can fill up a stat sheet as well. The only knock on him is that he stands at 5’8 and weighs in at only 152 pounds.

But height is not as important as it used to be in the old NHL. Players nowadays are able to run free out there without fear of being hooked, held, or downright driven into the concrete below like in the days of old. Such is why diminutive players like Montreal’s Cole Caulfield and Detroit’s Alex DeBrincat are able to do so well in this league.

And lucky for whoever is smart enough to draft him, Schmidt looks to be a 2025 version of both of those players. Because in his draft minus one season, Cameron racked up 31 goals and 27 assists, scoring 58 points in just 59 games played. And in the very early parts of this season, he looks destined to demolish his previous highs by scoring four goals in only two games played thus far this season.

Anaheim’s 2nd Rd Pick

Perhaps the most deflating moment of Briere’s still relatively young front-office career was the Flyers’ loss of their former top-five pick, Cutter Gauthier. Who, if you remember, Gauthier informed the team that he no longer wished to play for them and seemingly cut off any communications with the Flyers some time ago. Still being open-minded, It wasn’t until the Philadelphia’s management traveled halfway around the world to speak to Cutter at a Tournament he was playing in for Team USA and was denied access to talk to him face to face that they realized they had to do something.

That something turned out to be manifesting a trade that sent him to the Anaheim Ducks for the return of a young and prospering defenseman named Jamie Drysdale. But what most people forget is that it was not a one for one player trade. The Flyers also acquired in that trade the Ducks 2nd round pick in the 2025 Draft.

So, with the pick probably coming in the early part of the second round as well, I would suggest that the Flyers look to draft Jordan Gavin from the WHL’s Tri-City Americans. Jordan is a 5’11 181 pound two-way forward who can play both the wing and the center position.

He, like Cameron Schmidt and Jason Carbonneau, can take over a game single handily, but the difference between them is that Jordan will not force a play. At times, he is okay with just falling back and excelling as a playmaker when he sees that someone else just has the hotter stick that night. It’s about winning the game for Gavin, and with that kind of mindset, the sky is the limit for this young man.

Flyers Own 2nd

Now, to this point in the article, I have a potential top-line center of the future, a rough and rugged defenseman, and some absolutely explosive wingers for the Flyers to look to draft, but given the fact that the biggest question yet again for this team this season is how will their goaltending will fair? I think I should recommend a goaltender. But not just any goaltender, one that the Flyers could build around, one that will dominate the crease for at least the next decade.

This is no easy task, though, considering that this is something that the team has been trying to find since Ron Hextall retired in 2000. But I think I’m up for the challenge. This upcoming draft, there are going to be a number of good goaltenders available to select, but if I had my way, I would look to Switzerland, where a kid by the name of Elijah Neuenschwander plays.

And that’s because Elijah, to me, has a bit of old-school flare to his game. He, unlike most Butterfly goalies coming out today, does not choose to stay on his knees and just flop around the ice surface to try and locate a rebound through the opposition’s legs. Neuenschwander plays more of a standup style, where he chooses to use his 6’4 frame to his advantage and only goes down to make a stop down low or cover the puck.

To go with that, Elijah’s reaction and recovery time is off the charts. To prove this, you just have to watch his game tape, and you’ll see that Neuenschwander is so quick that, commonly, a player can shoot the puck. Elijah will go down to stop it and recover to his feet before the announcer can even finish getting out that the forward has taken a shot.

Folks, like him or not, Briere has been able to bring in two of the best prospects that this team has had in the last 20 years. Matvei Michkov & Jett Luchanko really look like they can be something special. And let me tell you, if Danny can turn all of the 2025 draft capital that he gained in such a short amount of time into this laundry list of players that I just laid out for you above, I swear construction crews will be erecting a statue of him outside of the Wells Fargo Center real soon!