Some thought the Flyers took too big a swing at this year’s draft when selecting center Jett Luchanko with the No. 13 overall pick. They’ve been impressed by the 18-year-old pivot so far in camp, though. Assistant coach Rocky Thompson told Charlie O’Connor of PHLY Sports on Thursday that Luchanko has “opened our eyes” as one of the biggest risers thus far.
Line rushes now still indicate it’s unlikely that Luchanko begins his post-draft season on the Flyers’ NHL roster. However, the well-rounded center prospect has perhaps accelerated his timeline to NHL minutes with a potential nine-game trial (or longer) in store for him in 2025-26. He’ll likely get one or two more games worth of preseason action before being returned to his junior team, the OHL’s Guelph Storm. He had a team-leading 74 points (20 G, 54 A) in 68 games last season with a -13 rating.
More notes from the Eastern Conference:
- Rangers star Artemi Panarin still carries a day-to-day designation with a lower-body injury and won’t play in Thursday’s game against the Bruins, per The Athletic’s Peter Baugh. But the high-flying winger did skate today and doesn’t project to miss much more time. He was hurt in Tuesday’s 6-4 win over the Islanders, a game that also saw defenseman Ryan Lindgren sustain a longer-term upper-body injury that has his availability for the beginning of the regular season in doubt.
- Canadiens defenseman Kaiden Guhle skated Thursday morning for the first time since having his appendix removed on Sep. 18, the team said. He’s now listed as day-to-day and could see action over the course of Montreal’s four remaining preseason contests. There’s no indication he’ll still be hampered by the time their regular-season opener hits on Oct. 9 against the Maple Leafs.
The 2024-2025 NHL M*A*S*H unit is filling up fast.