VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA - JUNE 22: Chuck Fletcher of the Philadelphia Flyers attends the 2019 NHL Draft at the Rogers Arena on June 22, 2019 in Vancouver, Canada. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)
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The upcoming NHL Draft has Flyers fans pumped and ready to go and for good reason, as the team has been linked to almost every big name for trade purposes. Fortunately, trades usually transpire at the draft.
Finally, fans can see the light at the end of the tunnel, and they hope to rejoice with a parade down Broad Street in a few years. People can already hear the voice of the iconic Gene Hart saying, “Ladies and Gentlemen, the Flyers are going to win the Stanley Cup! The Flyers win the Stanley Cup! The Flyers win the Stanley Cup! The Flyers have won the Stanley Cup!.” This draft can be one key to the Flyers immediate success. Without further delay here is my seven round Flyers Mock draft. Let’s go Flyers duh-duh-duh-da-duh.
Round 1: (Pick 13)– Gary Bettman takes the floor:
“And we have a trade to announce. The Philadelphia Flyers have traded Jakub Voracek to the St. Louis Blues in exchange for Vladimir Tarasenko. Also, with the 13th pick the Flyers select Center Chaz Lucius from the USHL.”
The announcers…”Holy smokes. Philadelphia means business this offseason, as they acquired Ryan Ellis a week ago, and now have traded Jake Voracek. Wow they are changing the culture of that team.”
The Flyers draft a stud with their first pick. Lucius is a sniper, and the Flyers crave his lethal heavy shot. For once the Flyers select a bonafide sniper in the first round, and one that skates well.
Lucius had a coming out party for the US National U18 Team for the USDP in the 2020-21 season. For the season, he amassed 13 goals, and five assists for a total of 18 points in 12 games played.
An injury prevented him from seeing more games last season, but he really showcased his skills in limited action. There are reasons he was shooting up the draft board.
If a person has watched Lucius play for the National Team, then one would notice his smooth silky hands. He is a natural goal scorer, blows by defenders, and knows how to put the biscuit in the basket. Lucius has evolved into a solid two-way player at his young age, and there is little doubt he will be a mainstay in the NHL.
This pick yet again shows the NHL that Flyers will be a force to be reckoned with for years to come, as Lucius restocks the Flyers cupboard down the middle. The proud orange clad Philly fans will have plenty to cheer about when they announce Lucius’s name with the 13th pick, and there will be plenty of Let’s Go Flyers chants from the proud faithful inside of their homes.
Round 2: (Pick 46) C, LW, Matthew Knies
Knies is a sturdy power Center/Winger, and is willing to take a beating on his way to the net. He picks his spot in the front of the net, and places his stick in the right position to tip pucks home. The majority of the time however he takes two or three defenders with him to the net, thus creating space for his teammates to pot the easy goal.
The Flyers could benefit from a fearless player that is willing to sacrifice his body for a dirty goal, and one that has a high motor. Knies is an excellent skater, and if one saw Stotts play this past season for the Tri-City Storm, then they would have noticed his good pair of hands. Knies has excellent vision of the ice, and has a lethal wrist shot to pair with his good vision of the ice. For the season, he registered 17 goals, and 25 assists for a total of 42 points in 44 games played for the Storm.
Round 3: (Pick 78) G, Benjamin Gaudreau
Gaudreau is a tall, lumberjack goaltender as he stands at 6’2. He plays for the Sarnia Sting in the OHL, but unfortunately that league did not play this season. However, Gaudreau opened eyes on the national stage as he posted a solid 2.20 GAA, and a .919 save percentage in five games played at the WJC-U18 tournament for Team Canada.
The young prospect in Gaudreau looked far more composed in net for Team Canada. He has a lot of size in net, and has the ability to cut off the angles well. He can improve upon his rebound control, and his ability to steal a game. Gaudreau has the ability to be a draft day steal. The Flyers have no need to rush his development with the likes of Samuel Ersson, Felix Sandström, and Kirill Ustimenko waiting in the wings.
Round 4: (Pick 110) RHD Ruben Rafkin
It was a little head scratching that Rafkin did not get selected in the draft this past year, but nonetheless here we are with just Ronnie Attard, Wyatte Wylie, and Jack St. Ivany in the Flyers farm system as Right-Handed Defensemen. They could always use more righties, as it’s unpredictable who’s game will correlate to the NHL level.
Rafkin was born on January, 8, 2002, in Turku, FIN. He will become the first Finnish hockey player drafted by the Flyers since 2006 in Joonas Lehtivuori. This native of Finland found a passion, and a love for the sport of hockey at a very young age, and as a matter of fact I’m sure he started skating when he was just 2-3 years old. His passion for the game found himself playing for the Windsor Spitfires for the 2019-20 season, where he torched the league (4g,27a in 59 games played), but Rafkin wanted to move closer to home, and play for a team he has always loved in TPS. He is currently playing for TPS in the Liiga league, which is a comparable league to the SHL. This young man in Rafkin exits the defensive zone smoothly, and leads the charge up the ice, he’s just an excellent skater.
How did this young 19-year-old prospect fare this past season, well he killed it as he was one of the top rookie Defensemen in the league. Rafkin led his team over second ranked IFK in game 4, to which Rafkin had a killer assist in game 2 that lead to an eventual 3-2 victory, to which HC TPS made it to the finals but eventually lost to the league’s top team Lukko. He started the season slow with limited playing time, but he got more confident as the season wore on in one of the third or fourth toughest leagues in the world by finishing four goals in 12 assists in 48 games played.
Round 5: (Pick 158) RW, Jaroslav Chmelar
This dazzling playmaker in a 17-year-old in Chmelar was asked to take on a bigger role in his first season for Jokerit U-18, and he had a career season to boot by tallying five goals and eight assists in 15 games played. This bruiser stands at 6’4 and weighs 198 pounds. He provides much needed size on the wing, and Chmelar is a solid skater for his size.
Chmelar just knows where to be and when, and he is excellent in the corners. He can pick a players hockey and lead the rush up the ice with ease. Chmelar, a native of the Czech Republic, can bang bodies in the corner, and is excellent around the net. He can provide a net front presence on the power play in the future for the orange and black, and he has a great wrist shot, as well.
Round 6: (Pick 174) RHD, Joel Nyström
Nyström is a natural Right-Handed Defenseman. He learned a lot from his unusual season with the Färjestad BK J20 in the SHL in 2020-21. For the season, he registered four goals, and seven assists for a total of 11 points in 15 games played. Nyström was just getting his feet wet for the tough competition ahead.
At age 19, Nyström enjoyed a stellar sophomore season for Färjestad BK J20. He has impeccable gap control as he races to tighten gaps with the opposition. He is good at backchecking and is not afraid to join the rush if need be. All in all this would be a high valued pick for the Flyers late in the draft.
Round 7: (Pick 206) RW, Niko Huuhtanen
Huuhtanen is a smooth skating Right Winger with a ton of offensive upside, and has size as he stands at 6’1 and weighs 183 pounds. People can see a theme of getting bigger to hang with for extended playoffs runs. After just playing one season for the Tappara U20 in 2020-21, he really showed his composure on the ice by taking on a larger role as the season wore on.
For the 2020-21 season for the Tappara U20, Huuhtanen registered 20 goals, and 14 assists for a total of 34 points in 37 games played. He was really rock solid all season for the Tappara, as Huuhtanen showed he can put the biscuit in the net. He might wind up being a hidden gem at this point of the draft, and he was promoted to Tappara in the Liiga league for the 2021-22 season, but he will play for the Everett Silvertips as he was selected second overall at the CHL Import Draft back in late June.
The Flyers need a guy like Tarasenko in the worst way. We need to find a way to make this happen