As we close out the draft board, the final entrant into the list is Carter Amico, a defenseman from the USNTDP.
Listed at 6-foot-5, Amico is a smooth-skating right shot defender with lots of pro attributes and skills that can reasonably be projected to the NHL. In the NHL big defenseman archetype, Amico is pretty much exactly what you’d hope for in a player. He’s a good skater, he’s fairly adequate with the puck in all three zones, doesn’t force plays, and uses his size to disrupt play with regularity. For a projected second or third rounder, Amico’s as close to a sure bet on paper as a defenseman can be.
Heading into the draft year, Amico was expected to challenge for the first round, or even the upper half of the first round. Unfortunately for the player, Amico’s season was derailed following a major knee injury in November, and he hasn’t seen playing time since. It’s been difficult to project Amico for that reason, as everyone’s evaluation of Amico has been from a small set of 17 USNTDP games prior to his injury. He’s missed a lot of time – and more importantly he’s delayed crucial development steps – but he has a good chance at getting back on track when he heads to college hockey powerhouse Boston University in 2026.
Pre-draft rankings
No. 65 by The Athletic (Scott Wheeler)
No. 62 by Elite Prospects
No. 47 by TSN (Bob McKenzie)
No. 68 by Daily Faceoff
Bio
DOB: March 15, 2007
Birthplace: Westbrook, Maine, USA
Position: Defenseman
Height: 6’5”
Weight: 234 lbs
Shoots: Right
Statistics
What’s there to like?
Amico is one of the more interesting prospects in this range of the draft, largely due to his combination of size and skill that’s fairly unparalleled at this point in the draft. Really, the only big reason why Amico will probably make it to the 40s or 50s is because of his knee injury. If you’re looking for an upside, swing pick on Day 2, Amico has all the things you’d want.
At his size, Amico could easily be a player that simply bullies opponents, not relying whatsoever on positional smarts and hockey IQ to defend. That’s a profile that can often be exposed at the NHL level, where skill level increases enough to regularly exploit those types of defensemen. With Amico, his size and hockey IQ go hand-in-hand, as he leverages his size and reach to break up plays. He’s a really tough player for forwards to enter the zone against, as Amico regularly uses his stick to force players to the outside, and then crush along the boards with a hit. He’s really fun to watch defend because of his combination of skill and brute force, as seen in the clip below where Amico absolutely barrels a forward into the boards.
At the front of the net, Amico is also really effective at keeping the area in front of the goalie as clean as possible. He’s a massive body that bullies opponents that try to screen the goaltender, as he’s really strong at boxing out guys that are nowhere near the imposing figure that Amico is. As Elite Prospects wrote in their draft guide, Amico “clears the front of the net with vitriol and then gets play moving the other way.” Really, we can easily imagine some team in the late first round or early second round salivating over Amico’s potential, because he does everything that hockey men would dream of in a big, right-shot defenseman.
What’s not to like?
Amico’s injury history is terrifying for a team, even if it’s not as debilitating and chronic as a guy like Roger McQueen’s back injury. The fact is, he’s a large defenseman that relies on his skating to be effective, and a knee injury is really inhibitive of that playing style. We’ll leave it to the doctors and team evaluators on this one, but Amico comes with considerable risk because of the type and severity of his knee injury.
Other than that, there are some concerns with Amico’s offensive output at the next level. Even in some USNTDP games, Amico is slightly slow in his decisions with the puck and with reading the play, especially when trying to exit the defensive zone. He has a tendency to hold the puck just a bit too long, resulting in turnovers and misplays in bad areas of the ice. Improving pace is something that can certainly happen, especially in Amico’s development situation at BU, so it’ll be interesting to see how he evolves in the next couple of years.
How would he fit in the Flyers’ system?
Amico would fit really well in both the Flyers’ playing style and within the organization’s defense depth chart. It’s not hard to imagine Amico’s aggressive style and bruising play being very popular in Philadelphia and with Rick Tocchet, as a team’s brute force on the second or third pair. On the other hand, the defense depth in the system is really suspect after Oliver Bonk. After him, the second best prospect in the system might be Hunter McDonald, who’s coming off a relatively rocky season in the AHL. Amico would be a solid bet at replenishing the organization’s depth chart, too.
Could the Flyers actually get him?
Yes. Amico is a risky bet on account of the injury, and the exact kind of guy that takes a tumble into the middle of Day 2. The Flyers, with their six picks in the top-50 (after the Trevor Zegras trade), will have three darts to throw at the dartboard in Round 2. With their ability to take on a mix of project-types like Amico and safer picks, it’s certainly possible that the Flyers will call Amico’s name on Day 2.
What scouts are saying
“Amico is an interesting pro prospect because of his size and ability to cover a lot of territory with strong forward skating and good overall mobility. There have been some highs and lows for him in some of my viewings, though, and he didn’t play much this season after undergoing knee surgery in November, making him difficult for me to slot. I’ve seen him play games where he struggled with his reads and got burned, and games where he pushes people around physically, gets a lot of stops, and shows enough of a puck game to look really projectable up levels. That inconsistency and the need for his game to refine in some important areas does leave a lot of questions for him to answer post-injury, though. He’s expected to play junior next year instead of jumping right into his commitment at Boston University because of all the time he missed this year. While he’s never going to be a big-time point producer, he can outlet and occasionally carry the puck, he’ll jump up into the play or the backdoor and his length and coverage area get your attention. Team USA’s blue line could have used him this year if he’d stayed healthy. It felt to me like he was still pretty raw and there were a range of potential outcomes even before the injury, but someone’s going to bet on the size/athleticism/decent enough tools grades in the second or third round, I’d think.”
“Amico hasn’t played much this season, but those 17 games certainly left a mark. He’s tall, heavy, athletic, and fairly quick with a good first step (though his edgework needs some adjustment). He hasn’t shown much offensive upside, but his ability to make clean, efficient breakouts is a sought-after skill, especially in big defenders. Originally a first-round lock, Amico now seems likely to be in the early second. If he can get his development back on track next season at BU, Amico could be a steal in that range.
Luke Sweeney, Dobber Prospects
And with the 2025 NHL Draft starting in two days, this is going to be the final post of the 2025 BSH Community Draft Board. We did it! Forty-seven profiles selected by you, our lovely readers, to dive deep into this class and potentially some future Flyers prospects.
Thank you for following along and (hopefully) enjoying all of these prospect profiles this year!
