Flyers trade down, select center Jett Luchanko at No. 13

After days of rumors and reports that the Philadelphia Flyers were looking to trade up from their designated selection at No. 12 in Round 1 of the 2024 NHL Draft, they ended up trading down.

Their actual pick came at No. 13, and in the form of a shock — Guelph Storm center Jett Luchanko.

“Oh, it’s unbelievable,” Luchanko said in the immediate aftermath of the pick. “It’s a great organization, and I wouldn’t want to be selected anywhere else. It’s just an honor.”

Holding the 12th selection, Flyers general manager Daniel Briere was staring at University of Denver defenseman Zeev Buium, who had surprisingly slipped out of the top-10. Finnish center Konsta Helenius — often mocked to the Flyers — was also available to be selected. But Briere stayed on the phone on the draft floor, and as three minutes came and went, it was clear the Flyers were intent upon trading down out of the No. 12 slot.

But they would only drop one pick, swapping the No. 12 selection for Minnesota’s No. 13, and picking up a 2025 third rounder in the process.

The Wild, unsurprisingly, nabbed Buium. So the Flyers would then take Helenius, right?

Wrong.

With legendary announcer — and Philadelphia native — Michael Buffer announcing the pick, it was Luchanko and not Helenius who the Flyers made their choice.

At least by the public draft boards, Luchanko is a bit of a reach. The Athletic’s Corey Pronman ranked him 19th, while his colleague Scott Wheeler had him at 31. TSN’s Craig Button placed him at 18, and FloHockey’s Chris Peters had him 18th as well. TSN’s Bob McKenzie, whose list serves as the best barometer of industry consensus, put Luchanko at No. 19.

So why did Briere and the Flyers go with Luchanko anyway?

Luchanko notably was a late riser on draft boards, despite just-OK draft-year production in the OHL (74 points in 68 games) for a player selected in the top-half of the first round. His excellent work for Team Canada at the U18 World Championships in April and May certainly helped his case (seven points in seven games), but that likely wasn’t the only factor that drove the pick.

What might those factors be? Speed, for one. And position, for two.

Luchanko is an absolute speedster. He ranked third in EliteProspects’ scouts poll of all players in the draft in terms of straight-line speed, and fifth in terms of Best Motor. In addition, scouts are generally convinced that — despite his less-than-imposing size (5’11, 187 pounds) — Luchanko will be able to stick down the middle, addressing the organization’s biggest positional weakness. In that same EliteProspects’ scouts poll, Luchanko ranked fifth on this Best Two-Way Forward list.

“I think I’m just someone who brings it every night,” Luchanko said. “I think consistency is one of the biggest things for me — I’m never going to take a day off.”

But Luchanko has skill, especially as a passer and a dangler. He flashes legitimate NHL top-six skill in those areas. In fact, compared to Helenius, there’s a strong case to be made that Luchanko is the significantly more dynamic player — though scouts generally agree that he does not match Helenius’ high-end hockey IQ. Luchanko compared himself to Nick Suzuki — certainly an offensive weapon — who scored 33 goals and 77 points last season for Montreal.

And there are reasons to view this as an upside play on the part of the Flyers — Luchanko is an August birthday who is very young for his draft year, hinting at untapped potential that older prospects may not have. Also, his just-OK OHL production was likely hampered by the fact that he didn’t have much help on his Guelph club this season. The Flyers may believe that his draft-year statistics are deflated relative to his ultimate upside.

“As he gets stronger, we assume he’s going to become more and more dynamic. We’re really excited about his potential,” Flyers assistant GM Brent Flahr said. “We think it’s just the tip of the iceberg with him.”

Luchanko doesn’t come without warts. His shot does not grade out as plus, and he scored most of his 20 goals in juniors around the net via dangles, not by beating goalies clean from distance. Also, there are some questions about his decision-making — namely his ability to take full advantage of his speed in terms of choosing routes through the neutral zone with the puck. Finally, he’s in need of significant work in terms of building up his strength. This isn’t a prospect who will walk right onto the NHL roster; he’ll need time.

But in Luchanko, the Flyers are getting a speedy, competitive forward likely to stick at their position of greatest need. Whether that was worth passing up on both Buium and Helenius, however, will only be known given the passage of time.