Flyers Receive High Marks for 2025 Draft Class

The 2025 NHL Draft is in the books, and according to many experts, the Flyers made out quite well. 

Draft grades can be a somewhat futile process, since it’s hard to truly project what a 17 or 18-year-old will be in the long-term future. But early reviews for what the Flyers did were positive.

Rachel Doerrie of ESPN gave the Flyers 2025 class an A-.

Strap in because this one was a ride!

 

The Flyers needed a center, passed on [James] Hagens, but got Porter Martone. I love Martone's game and think he has a ton of potential, but it feels like they went with size. Having said that, I'm not going to dock them grading points because Martone at No. 6 was excellent value. If his skating improves, he's going to be a star.

 

The decision to trade up to No. 13 and select Jack Nesbitt not only left a ton of value on the board from a player perspective, but the Flyers lost the pick value trade to their state rival. Nesbitt will be a solid third-line center, but I have some serious concerns about the Flyers drafting for size with a lower ceiling.

 

Outside of that, I loved the Carter Amico, Jack Murtagh, Shane Vansaghi and Matthew Gard picks. The Flyers clearly had a mission to get bigger and meaner, because every pick was spent on a player with some level of size and competitive meanness that Rick Tocchet is going to love. The Flyers certainly got a lot better this weekend, but there is little doubt that some talent was left on the board.

Steven Ellis gave it an A+ as the second-best draft class of the weekend, only behind the New York Islanders.

Talk about getting tougher to play against. Nesbitt, Amico, Shane Vansaghi and Matthew Gard are absolute physical beasts, and Martone can flatten guys if he needs to, as well. I love Martone, because while they didn’t get their main positional need at No. 6 – a center – they got the best winger, who happened to be the best player available at the time. Amico could be a great value pick at No. 38 – he missed most of the season due to an injury, but he’s an absolute unit. Nesbitt can be the team’s No. 3 center, while Vansaghi and Gard are going to be miserable to contain.

Corey Pronman of The Athletic gave the Flyers an A, also one of three teams with an A or better.

The Flyers got Porter Martone with their first pick. He was my third-rated player overall in the draft, and someone who I think, despite his subpar skating, has the makings of a potential first-line winger with size. They then proceeded to trade up to pick Jack Nesbitt. I’m a fan of Nesbitt’s game. I agree with their assessment that he could be a second-line center, again with size, even if I wouldn’t have traded up to get him; I do understand their pressing need for centers, though. Those were two premium pieces Philadelphia acquired early on Day 1. The Flyers added a lot of size in this draft overall, but they picked big guys who can legit play. Carter Amico and Matthew Gard are highly athletic. Shane Vansaghi is very skilled. Martone and Nesbitt project as important players for this team, but they have a really good chance to get a third useful NHL player from their Day 2 picks.

Chris Peters of FloHockey gave the Flyers an A-.

I was surprised to see the Flyers pass on a center to take Porter Martone, but you can’t deny the incredible upside he brings to the table along with his size. The Flyers still needed to grab a center and they traded up to take Jack Nesbitt. I think the value was rich on that move-up and that Nesbitt’s skating does give me pause even though I like his offensive capabilities and hockey sense. Neither Martone nor Nesbitt are spectacular skaters, but they can score. I really, really liked Philly’s second-round though. They got a massive defenseman in Carter Amico, who missed most of the season with injury but showed really impressive flashes when healthy. Jack Murtagh is a scorer with some grit to him, Shane Vansaghi just looks like a Flyer and might be one of the physically strongest players in the draft. And then Matthew Gard kept the theme going with big fellas who can make plays down low. I think the Flyers made their six picks within the first 57 of the draft really count and made their organization better.

Kyle Cushman of The Score gave the Flyers a B+.

The Flyers' prospect pool lacked size, and they certainly addressed that by adding 6-foot-3 Martone, 6-foot-5 Nesbitt, 6-foot-6 Amico, and more later in the draft. Martone has thrilling potential with his playmaking. Trading up for Nesbitt was rich. Vansaghi is a menace on the forecheck. Philadelphia eventually becomes harder to play against with this kind of draft class.

Time will tell if the Flyers truly got this right, but early reviews are positive. Martone is the headliner of the class at sixth overall, and with first-line potential, he can be a cornerstone piece for the Flyers.

The clear gamble among the picks is moving up to take Jack Nesbitt, a player that was seen as a late first-round projection that went sooner due to a massive run on centers. The Flyers traded their last two first-round picks to make the jump, so that's a sizable bet on their part.

That said, many felt the value the Flyers got in the second round balanced out the class well and helped them rebound from taking the gamble on Nesbitt.

Kevin Durso is Flyers insider for 97.3 ESPN. Follow him on social media @Kevin_Durso.