The Philadelphia Flyers entered the 2024 NHL Draft with a possible 10 picks. They had a chance to pick three times in the first 36 picks.
However, Danny Briere was as active as any NHL GM at the Las Vegas Sphere. He traded back from 12th to 13th in the first round to draft Jett Luchanko, a center from the Guelph Storm in the Ontario Hockey League.
Flyers at 2024 NHL Draft
The Flyers dealt the first-round pick acquired from the Florida Panthers in the Claude Giroux deal in 2022. The Columbus Blue Jackets also exercised their option to defer the conditional second-round pick from the Ivan Provorov deal to the 2025 NHL Draft.
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The Flyers ultimately picked only seven times in Vegas. Once the Columbus pick came off the table, Briere used the draft capital he’s acquired to swindle and land his coveted targets.
The Flyers sent the 32nd-overall pick to the Edmonton Oilers for a conditional, top-12 protected first-rounder in 2025. They now own three first-round picks in 2025, which they project to be a loaded draft.
“Those are really critical drafts for us (2023, 2024, 2025), when you’re doing a rebuild. Especially now in a cap era where it’s really tough to go out and sign free agents. That’s kind of what we hope to be the base for us moving forward, so they’re critical. They’re critical drafts.” -Danny Briere
The 2024 class didn’t have clear consensus after the expected top pick Macklin Celebrini. The NHL Draft also doesn’t include many players who debut in the league the following season, so don’t expect these prospects in orange and black just yet.
However, most of them will debut at Flyers Development Camp in Vorhees next week.
1st Round (13)- Jett Luchanko
Center, Guelph Storm (OHL)
Danny Briere thought outside the box. Jett Luchanko wasn’t the choice of the mock drafts. He wasn’t even on the radar of most NHL scouts before the 2023-24 season.
However, the Flyers determined that Luchanko’s excellent speed makes him a prospect with a high ceiling.
The Flyers traded back one spot and passed on prospects ranked higher than Luchanko in the public sphere. However, they showed the willingness to push against the majority opinion.
“His work ethic. If you watch him play, he’s always one of the hardest workers (on) both sides of the ice. His vision (and) his hockey sense are high end. There’s obviously some things that we’ll work with him to develop and increase, but to have a guy understand both sides of the ice the way he does… that’s really exciting for us.” -Danny Briere
2nd Round (59)- Spencer Gill
Defenseman, Rimouski Oceanic (QMJHL)
The Flyers traded back from the 12th-overall spot to the 13th in the first round. They passed up the opportunity to select defenseman Zeev Buium, a prospect generally ranked higher than Jett Luchanko.
Danny Briere acknowledged that Buium’s size on the blue line played a factor. The Flyers went the opposite direction in the second round.
Spencer Gill stands at 6-foot-4. He brings more of a physical game than some of the current Flyers defensemen but less offensive upside. He scored 12 goals and added 34 assists in juniors in Quebec last season.
