2025-26 Player Grades: What else can you say about Porter Martone?

With just over five minutes to go in the NCAA Worchester Regional Final between Michigan State and Wisconsin in late March, the Spartans, led by Porter Martone, had a two-goal cushion. All they had to do was protect the lead, or at least not make two miscues in the final five minutes. However, less than a minute later Wisconsin tied things up, and won it in overtime. Martone’s collegiate career was over. But within hours the next chapter was being written. Philadelphia, then in the midst of trying to stay in the playoff chase and closing in on teams above them, signed Martone to his entry-level contract. And the rest, as they say, is history.

Two days after signing his ELC, Martone dressed for the Flyers against the Washington Capitals. Most expected him to get his feet wet and, with any luck, not look like a deer in the headlights or in over his head. Well, there was no chance of that. In 16:54 of ice time, Martone was held pointless but had five shots. He also took a delay of game penalty early in the first. But overall, the debut was impressive, especially for a guy who suffered such a crushing defeat days earlier with Michigan State. The fact the Flyers had no qualms putting Martone into the lineup to provide a boost of youth and talent this late in the season shows they believed in him. And by the end of the season, there were very few doubters. It wasn’t a huge sample size, but Martone silenced or shocked a lot of people by just how much he looked like he belonged in the National Hockey League.

In his second game, he earned his first point (an assist), but was still looking for the team’s first win. That transpired in his third game, a 4-1 win over the Islanders. It was two days later at Philadelphia’s Xfinity Mobile Arena against Boston where Martone scored his first in a big way. With the game in overtime, and the Flyers the beneficiaries of a two-man advantage, Martone parked himself in the bumper position as Philadelphia went with five forwards. Trevor Zegras fed the puck down low to Christian Dvorak, who passed it to Martone in front. Although the first attempt didn’t deliver, the rebound did.

In terms of both the eye test and the underlying metrics, Martone was a force to be reckoned with down the stretch, playing for a club sprinting for either a wildcard spot or the third seed in the Metropolitan Division. His goals for percentage was great while he was at or above 50 per cent in the other metrics shown above. Generally, while still getting accustomed to finding his way around a National Hockey League locker room, Martone was on the right side of the puck far more often than not, and driving play up ice. Paired with Travis Konency and Christian Dvorak early on, the winger was able to showcase his talents while at the same time rarely being caught out of position or cheating.

Finally, in terms of rookie scoring, Martone was ranked 55th (but was tied with seven other skaters, some of whom played 60 games). Scoring at over a point-per-game pace, Martone would’ve ended up with 91 points for the season. Again, that’s not to say he would’ve hit a wall during his rookie year at some point over a full season. That’s only natural. But, on the other hand, a 91-point season would’ve put him 29 points ahead of the 2025-26 rookie point leader in Montreal’s Ivan Demidov.

The Flyers clinched a playoff spot in the second-to-last game against Carolina, a 3-2 shootout victory. Martone had the primary assist on the game-tying goal, then had a goal and assist in the finale over Montreal. A great coda to a stellar nine-game debut. But, as you all know, he wasn’t done. When the playoffs began, Martone scored two game-winning goals in his first two playoff games. The first of these showed his talent and lethal shot.

Martone hit a bit of a wall the rest of the series, adding one assist the rest of round one while adding two assists against Carolina, one in Game 3 and one in Game 4.. Through it all, Martone never looked out of place, was driving play, and rarely looked overwhelmed despite these high-pressure contests with everything on the line. Overall, he finished with 15 points in 19 regular season and playoff games combined. It gave a taste of what might be on the horizon, and why the Flyers might have a very bright future ahead of them.

Did Martone live up to expectations?

In a nutshell, yes! Although the same size was once again small compared to other youngsters like Matvei Michkov, Alex Bump, and Denver Barkey, Martone was able to deliver a much needed shot of adrenaline to the Flyers at the most important time of the season. The talent and ability was present almost immediately, and he wasn’t shy to get under the skin of his opponents at nearly every opportunity. As impressive as he was on the ice, his maturity far exceeded his 19 years. Martone could’ve pouted somewhat, especially after seeing Michigan State choke somewhat when it mattered most. Instead, Martone signed his deal with the Flyers, turned the page, and set his sights on helping the Flyers get into the playoffs for the first time in years.

Another part of his game that never wavered was his two-way play. Rarely was he caught cheating on a play or hoping to stretch the opposition’s defense for a home run type of pass. He worked in both ends of the ice equally well, and even seemed to bring some life (at least for a few games) to the otherwise extremely dormant power play, giving the Flyers a new look and some fresh energy to hopefully get the special team off the mat.

It’s difficult to predict how the 2026-27 version of Martone will pan out, whether he’ll fly out of the gates or hit a wall early on. Regardless, based on the stretch run and the impressive playoff performance, Martone more than lived up to expectations.

What can we expect from Martone next season?

With 15 points in his first 19 games, seeing Porter Martone in the same production range as Michkov in his rookie season might be a good comparable. Obviously, if the forward has a good training camp and comes ready to go, that will be a good first step. It’s expected Martone will be a top-six winger on the Flyers next year and for the foreseeable future. Of course, should he hit the wall and go into a funk that last some time, it would only be proper to see head coach Rick Tocchet move him down to the third line to see if he can work his way out of it.

As well, Martone should make the power play more effective next season simply by his presence. He looks like he can fit the bumper role perfectly, and isn’t afraid to dig in the dirty areas for pucks. Nor take some punishment from the opposition to screen the goaltender and generate more chances. What will also be interesting is that he should end up being one of the major thorns in the sides of Metropolitan Division opponents, which bodes well for Philadelphia.

The forward set the bar rather high after such an incredibly impressive introduction in 2025-26. If he can come close to that performance over the course of 82 games, it should definitely be a stellar season for “Marty.”

How do we grade Martone’s 2025-26 season?

Porter Martone hit the ground running, then over the course of the ensuing 19 games, started flying. He couldn’t have done much more in that 19-game stretch, other than take the team on his back and, along with Dan Vladar, carry the Flyers into the semi-finals with a superhuman effort over Carolina. The level of excellence he delivered surprised a lot of fans, even diehards. Nobody could’ve predicted the promise he showed in roughly five weeks, yet Martone was up to the challenge and then some. As memorable a first impression as you’ll see.

Grade: A