Jack Nesbitt Commits To University Of Michigan
Philadelphia Flyers first-round pick Jack Nesbitt announced on social media today that he has committed to play NCAA hockey at the University of Michigan.
Nesbitt, 19, has played the last three seasons for the Windsor Spitfires of the OHL. Today’s announcement confirms his OHL career has now concluded. A 6’4″ center, Nesbitt has been a quality top-six center for the Spitfires in each of the last two seasons. In his draft campaign, he scored 25 goals and 64 points in 65 regular-season games, and 10 points in 12 playoff games.
This past year, Nesbitt kept up those levels of production – though he didn’t take a major step forward statistically. He finished 2025-26 with 25 goals and 58 points in 55 regular-season games, and 10 points in 13 playoff games. Nesbitt’s Spitfires made a run to the OHL’s conference finals, where they were dispatched in five games by the Kitchener Rangers, the eventual champions.
As a prospect, Nesbitt is generally well-regarded, though some have questioned his eventual NHL upside. Entering the season, the team at Elite Prospects ranked Nesbitt the No. 8 prospect in the Flyers’ system, and he did not feature in their ranking of the top-100 prospects league-wide. In ranking him No. 8 in Philadelphia’s system, Cam Robinson wrote Nesbitt “projects as a reliable two-way forward who can play tough minutes and chip in offensively.”
Scott Wheeler of The Athletic rated Nesbitt the No. 4 prospect in Philadelphia’s system last month, and the No. 80 prospect leaguewide. Wheeler noted scouts have “questions about [Nesbitt’s] ultimate offense and whether he projects as more of a third-line player than a top-six one.”
Nesbitt will get the chance to try to answer those questions at Michigan. He’ll join a team filled to the brim with quality NHL prospects, including first-round pick forwards Michael Hage and Will Horcoff, as well as potential 2026 first-rounders in Adam Valentini and J.P. Hurlbert. Given how much talent Michigan expects to have next season, it will be interesting to see whether Nesbitt lands in the top-six as a freshman with the Wolverines, or if he is utilized in more of a supporting role.
Flyers Acquire 12th Overall Pick, Select Jack Nesbitt
As first reported by Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman, the Pittsburgh Penguins have traded the 12th overall pick to the Philadelphia Flyers for the 22nd and 31st overall selections. With their newfound pick, the Flyers selected forward Jack Nesbitt from the OHL’s Windsor Spitfires.
In what is considered a surprise selection by most analysts’ projections, the Flyers selected a player projected toward the bottom third of the first round, if not the second round. The most logical explanation is that Philadelphia believed other teams were interested in Nesbitt and were uncomfortable waiting until the 22nd pick to select him.
Still, he’s a prototypical Flyers player and has serious puck skills. Standing at 6’4″, 183 lbs, Nesbitt was selected as a center, but given his skating ability, is likely destined for a spot on the left wing. He recently concluded his second full year in Windsor, scoring 25 goals and 64 points in 65 games with a +12 rating, and winning the OHL’s Most Improved Player Award as voted on by the coaches.
Unfortunately, despite the raw scoring potential, there are serious concerns with Nesbitt’s skating ability. His scoring pace and effort level declined significantly toward the end of the 2024-25 campaign, tallying only one goal in 12 postseason contests with a -5 rating.