Re-Drafting the Flyers’ 2010s – Part II: 2015-2019
The NHL Draft goes a long way in building a franchise for the long-run, as long as you draft the right players. Something easier said than done.
At the time of the draft, all teams have to look at is potential in a player and how they fit what they’re trying to build.
It’s almost like gambling. There are certain traits to look for in young players, but ultimately its a game of chance.
Luckily for the Flyers, luck has been on their side a lot this decade when it comes to drafting. Sean Couturier, Ivan Provorov, Travis Konecny, and Carter Hart were all drafted by the Flyers and have turned into very good NHL players.
But knowing what we know now, how different could the Flyers look had the entire NHL knowing what they know now about each player?
In last week’s re-draft of each NHL Draft from 2011 to 2014, the Flyers ended up with Jordan Binnington, Alex Galchenyuk, Darnell Nurse, and Travis Sanheim.
Let’s dive into the latter half of the decade with the NHL Drafts of 2015 through 2019.
2015 NHL Draft
*Original Picks: Flyers select Ivan Provorov (7th overall) and Travis Konecny (24th overall)
Re-Draft Results
Picks 1 – 6: Connor McDavid (1st, Edmonton); Jack Eichel (2nd, Buffalo); Mitch Marner (3rd, Arizona); Mikko Rantanen (4th, Toronto); Matthew Barzal (5th, Carolina); Sebastian Aho (6th, New Jersey)
7th Overall // Flyers select defenseman Ivan Provorov
Photo: NHL.com
The Flyers stick with their guy.
There’s a lot of talent on the board at seven with players like Brock Boeser, Zach Werenski, and Thomas Chabot, but Provorov trumps all of them for now.
What the 23-year old defenseman has done in his first four NHL seasons has been exceptional. Since breaking into the league in 2016, Provorov has quickly become the Flyers’ top defenseman, averaging almost 24 minutes on ice through 315 career games.
He’s been durable, reliable, and even provides offense. The Flyers got this pick right in 2015 and they don’t go back on it now.
Others possibilities: Brock Boeser, Zach Werenski, Thomas Chabot
Picks 8 – 23: Brock Boeser (8th, Columbus); Zach Werenski (9th, San Jose); Thomas Chabot (10th overall); Kyle Connor (11th, Florida); Travis Konecny (12th, Dallas); Noah Hanifin (13th, Boston); Timo Meier (14th, Boston); Dylan Strome (15th, Boston); Anthony Cirelli (16th, Islanders); Brandon Carlo (17th, Winnipeg); Jake DeBrusk (18th, Ottawa); Anthony Beaullivier (19th, Detroit); Ilya Samsonov (20th, Minnesota); Connor Garland (21st, Ottawa); Mackenzie Blackwood (22nd, Washington); Evgeny Svechnikov (23rd, Vancouver)
24th Overall // Flyers select Winger, Andrew Mangiapane
Photo: Sergei Belski/USA Today Sports
Unfortunately for the Flyers, Travis Konecny is long gone by the time they are back on the clock at 24th overall. Instead, they go with another undersized winger with great play-driving ability in Andrew Mangiapane.
The 5’10” winger was a 6th round selection in 2015 but flies all the way up to 24th overall after another 100-point season in the OHL in 2015-16 followed by a fairly successful transition to the pros.
Now in his third season with the Flames (first as a regular starter), Mangiapane has excelled in a bottom-six role, posting 32 points in 68 games and plays a fairly good game in all three zones despite his small size.
Others possibilities: Travis Dermott, Rasmus Andersson, Vince Dunn
2016 NHL Draft
*Original Pick: Flyers select German Rubstov at 22nd overall
Re-Draft Results
Picks 1 – 21: Auston Matthews (1st, Toronto); Patrik Laine (2nd, Winnipeg); Matthew Tkachuk (3rd; Columbus); Clayton Keller (4th, Edmonton); Pierre Luc-Dubois (5th, Vancouver); Charlie McAvoy (6th, Calgary); Alex DeBrincat (7th, Arizona); Mikhail Sergachev (8th, Buffalo); Jesper Bratt (9th, Montreal); Carter Hart (10th, Colorado); Tyson Jost (11th, Ottawa); Adam Fox (12th, New Jersey); Jacob Chycrun (13th, Carolina); Alex Nylander (14th, Boston); Filip Hronek (15th, Minnesota); Luke Kunin (16th, Arizona); Sam Girard (17th, Nashville); Jesse Puljujarvi (18th, Winnipeg); Sam Steel (19th, New York Islanders); Dennis Cholowski (20th, Detroit); Jake Bean (21st, Carolina)
22nd Overall // Flyers select Center, Brett Howden
Photo: Minas Panagiotakis/Getty Images
Overall, the 2016 draft was very top-heavy. So with all the elite talent gone by the time the Flyers select at 22, they go with a bottom-six forward that can contribute soon in Brett Howden.
Howden, the actual 27th pick in the draft by Tampa Bay, isn’t flashy offensively with 42 points in 136 games but he’s become a fixture of the Rangers lineup over the past two seasons at just 22 years old, averaging 14 minutes per game.
With their actual pick in Rubstov on the board, the Flyers opt for a more NHL-ready player that can contribute at the NHL level earlier than Rubstov.
Other Possibilities: Tage Thompson, Ollie Juolevi, Henrik Borgstrom
2017 NHL Draft
*Orginal Pick: Flyers select Nolan Patrick at second overall
Re-Draft Results
Pick 1: Elias Petersson (1st, New Jersey)
2nd Overall // Flyers select Center, Nico Hischier
Photo: Brad Mills/USA Today Sports
After the Devils select Elias Petersson with the first overall pick, the Flyers end up with the actual 2017 first overall pick in center Nico Hischier after some incredible luck in the draft lottery.
Through three seasons, Hischier leads all 2017 draftees with 209 games played, registering 135 points while playing at the top of the Devils lineup.
Originally, in the actual 2017 draft, Hischier and Nolan Patrick were seen as equal talents with it being a “toss-up” between the two regarding who would go first overall.
Ultimately, the Devils selected Hischier and the Flyers took Nolan Patrick with the second overall pick.
While Patrick has shown flashes of becoming a solid player, his battle with migraines and overall injury history gives Hischier the edge to be the Flyers pick at two.
Other Possibilities: Miro Heiskanen, Robert Thomas, Cale Makar, Nolan Patrick
2018 NHL Draft
*Original Picks: Flyers select Joel Farabee (14th overall) and Jay O’Brien (19th overall)
Re-Draft Results
Pick 1-13: Rasmus Dahlin (1st, Buffalo); Andrei Svechnikov (2nd, Carolina); Brady Tkachuk (3rd, Montreal); Quinn Hughes (4th, Ottawa); Barrett Hayton (5th, Arizona); Jesperi Kotkaniemi (6th, Detroit); Filip Zadina (7th, Vancouver); Joel Farabee (8th, Chicago); Adam Boqvist (9th, New York Rangers); Rasmus Sandin (10th Edmonton); Noah Dobson (11th, New York Islanders), Grigori Denisenko (12th, New York Islanders); Liam Foudy (13th, Dallas)
14th Overall // Flyers select Defenseman, Evan Bouchard
Credit: Perry Nelson/USA Today Sports
With Farabee off the board six picks earlier, the Flyers go for defense after taking a forward in each of the last two drafts.
With Evan Bouchard, they get a defenseman with great size at 6’3″ whose produced offense at an incredible rate in juniors (201 points over 223 games) and it’s transferred over the AHL.
After four great seasons with the London Knights, Bouchard was named an AHL all-star in 2019, was an assistant captain on Canada’s World Junior team, and has turned himself into one of the top defensive prospects in the NHL.
Other Possibilities: Vitali Kravtsov, Ty Smith, Ty Dellandrea
Picks 15 – 18: Vitali Kravtsov (15th, Florida); Alexander Romanov (16th, Colorado); Ty Dellandrea (17th, New Jersey); Ty Smith (18th, Columbus)
19th Overall // Flyers select Defenseman, Ryan Merkley
Photo: Aaron Bell/OHL Images
The Flyers double down on defense with another offensively-gifted defenseman.
While the 19-year-old Merkley can’t match the size of Bouchard, he certainly can match up in production.
Staying for a full five seasons in the OHL, Merkley tallied 269 points in 248 games and has said he’s modeling his game after Erik Karlsson.
Though he’s got a long way to go before becoming Erik Karlsson, the Flyers will happily take him at 19th overall rather than their actual pick of Jay O’Brien which has left much to be desired.
Other Possibilities: Jay O’Brien, Rasmus Kapari
2019 NHL Draft
*Original Pick: Flyers select Cam York at 14th overall
Re-Draft Results
Picks 1 – 13: Jack Hughes (1st, New Jersey); Kaapo Kakko (2nd, New York Rangers); Kirby Dach (3rd, Chicago); Trevor Zegras (4th, Colorado); Bowen Byram (5th, Los Angeles); Moritz Seider (6th, Detroit); Spencer Knight (7th, Buffalo); Alex Turcotte (8th, Edmonton); Dylan Cozens (9th, Anaheim); Vasily Podkolsin (10th, Vancouver); Cole Caufield (11th, Arizona); Victor Soderstrom (13th, Florida)
14th Overall // Flyers select Center, Alex Newhook
Photo: Team Shred
After doubling up on defense in the 2018 draft, Chuck Fletcher goes with a forward in his first draft as Flyers’ GM, selecting Alex Newhook.
Following two years in the BCHL (British Columbia Hockey League), Newhook burst onto the scene at Boston College this past season with 42 points in 34 games and became the first Golden Eagle player to take home NCAA Division I rookie of the year and ninth to win Hockey East rookie of the year.
Newhook’s quick development to a Division I star moves him up a few spots from the 16th spot where he was actually taken to the Flyers at 14.
Other Possibilities: Cam York, Peyton Krebs
Featured Image: Yong Kim/Philadelphia Inquirer
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