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Planning to watch the NHL draft but aren’t exactly an expert on the prospects likely to be taken? Or maybe you are an expert, and simply want to compare your personal draft board with another Flyers-centric observer?
The first annual PHLY Flyers Top 50 Big Board is here to help.
I would not consider myself to be a scout or draft expert. But since the conclusion of the 2023-24 season, I’ve watched a significant amount of tape, read extensive scouting reports, and evaluated the statistical profiles of the vast majority of the prospects projected to be selected in the top three rounds of the 2024 NHL Draft.
This is the end product of all of that work — my ranking of my top 50 prospects.
2024 is very much a “tier” draft, so to that end, I’ve separated out my list into six separate tiers to distinguish between my rough grades of each of the ranked players. In addition, I’ve been recording Prospect Preview videos all month for our PHLY Flyers YouTube channel (please subscribe!), and each of those videos is included in the Big Board. Just click the hyperlink on each player’s name (I did not record all 50, but there are videos for the majority of ranked prospects) to watch the video, which includes stats, a scouting report, and my general thoughts on the prospect.
Also, it’s worth noting that this final list does include a slight “Flyers bias,” in the sense that it accounts for the Flyers’ need for high-end skill and also existing pieces on the Philadelphia roster expected to be part of the long-term future (Zayne Parekh, for example, would probably be a couple slots higher on a generic ranking list, but drops a bit due to the presence of Jamie Drysdale).
And now, onto the list. Feel free to keep this handy throughout the first two rounds of the draft especially.
Tier 1 (High likelihood of franchise player)
1. Macklin Celebrini – C – Boston University (NCAA)
Tier 2 (Blue-chip-level 1st rounders)
2. Ivan Demidov – W/C – SKA St. Petersburg (KHL/MHL)
3. Zeev Buium – LHD – University of Denver (NCAA)
4. Berkly Catton – C/W – Spokane (WHL)
5. Sam Dickinson – LHD – London (OHL)
6. Cayden Lindstrom – C/W – Medicine Hat (WHL)
7. Artyom Levshunov – RHD – Michigan St. (NCAA)
8. Tij Iginla – W/C – Kelowna (WHL)
9. Carter Yakemchuk – RHD – Calgary (WHL)
10. Anton Silayev – LHD – Torpedo (KHL)
11. Zayne Parekh – RHD – Saginaw (OHL)
12. Konsta Helenius – C – Jukurit (Finland Liiga)
13. Cole Eiserman – LW – U.S. National Team Development Program
14. Beckett Sennecke – RW – Oshawa (OHL)
Tier 3 (1st round grade)
15. Michael Hage – C – Chicago (USHL)
16. Adam Jiricek – RHD – HC Plzen (Czech)
17. Liam Greentree – RW – Windsor (OHL)
18. Michael Brandsegg-Nygård – F – Mora IK (Sweden Allsvenskan)
19. Nikita Artamonov – W – Torpedo (KHL)
20. Jett Luchanko – C – Guelph (OHL)
21. Stian Solberg – LHD – Vålerenga (Norway)
22. Teddy Stiga – U.S. National Team Development Program
23. Igor Chernyshov – LW – Dynamo Moskva (KHL)
24. Trevor Connelly – LW – Tri-City (USHL)
Tier 4 (borderline 1st round grade)
25. Cole Beaudoin – C – Barrie (OHL)
26. Marek Vanacker – LW – Brantford (OHL)
27. Ryder Ritchie – RW – Prince Albert (WHL)
28. Leo Sahlin Wallenius – LHD – Växjö Lakers (Sweden J20)
29. Lucas Pettersson – C – MoDo (Sweden J20)
Tier 5 (2nd round grade)
30. Aron Kiviharju – LHD – HIFK (Finland Liiga)
31. E.J. Emery – RHD – U.S. National Team Development Program
32. Alfons Freij – LHD – Växjö Lakers (Sweden J20)
33. Sam O’Reilly – C – London (OHL)
34. Egor Surin – C/W – Loko Yaroslavl (MHL)
35. Cole Hutson – LHD – U.S. National Team Development Program
36. Tanner Howe – W/C – Regina (WHL)
37. Luke Misa – C/W – Mississauga (OHL)
38. Dean Letourneau – C – St. Andrew’s College (Canadian Prep)
39. Terik Parascak – RW – Prince George (WHL)
40. Sacha Boisvert – C – Muskegon (USHL)
41. Emil Hemming – W – TPS (Finland Liiga)
42. Linus Eriksson – C – Djurgårdens IF (Sweden Allsvenskan)
43. Matvei Gridin – RW – Muskegon (USHL)
Tier 6 (borderline 2nd round grade)
44. Maxim Massé – RW – Chicoutimi (QMJHL)
45. Dominik Badinka – RHD – Malmö Redhawks (SHL)
46. John Mustard – LW – Waterloo (USHL)
47. Harrison Brunicke – RHD – Kamloops (WHL)
48. Henry Mews – RHD – Ottawa (OHL)
49. Adam Kleber – RHD – Lincoln (USHL)
50. Charlie Elick – RHD – Brandon (WHL)
Again, these are my personal rankings — not where I expect each player will be drafted. To that end, I’m going to point out a few players who I suspect to be taken significantly earlier than I rank them — my read is that NHL teams like them more than I do — and then the flip side: players who probably will last much longer on draft weekend than you might think based on my personal board.
Players who likely will be drafted much higher than ranking
Beckett Sennecke
EJ Emery
Sasha Boisvert
Charlie Elick
Player who likely will be drafted much lower than ranking
Nikita Artamonov
Teddy Stiga
Aron Kiviharju
Luke Misa