Beating the shot clock in a tie for number 32 on the Community Draft Board is Jett Luchanko, a speedy two-way center who possesses a deep toolbox and is effective all over the ice.
Pre-Draft Rankings
No. 34 by Elite Prospects
No. 35 by Corey Pronman/The Athletic
No. 26 by Sportsnet
No. 26 by Bob McKenzie/TSN
Statistics
What’s to like?
Luchanko plays a very entertaining and effective style of hockey. A true centerman, he has a fantastic skating speed that allows him to dart all over the ice and make plays everywhere; whether he’s stripping pucks or entering and exiting the zone with speed, he has all the hallmarks of a modern-day, middle-six center. Maybe the best compliment one can give Luchanko is that he uses his speed to constantly effect the game. It’s always apparent, he speeds players up with his back check, and has a general quickness in his offensive game as well, with or without the puck.
His decision-making with the puck is sound, and he showed himself to be a very adept passer, especially at the U-18 World Championship when he played with some better linemates.
That’s an elite level look to Tij Iginla for the goal, and his 50 assists this past OHL season show that it’s not a fluke. It remains to be seen if Luchanko has the raw talent to become and elite playmaker at the next level, but as it stands he has shown an ability to give his teammates opportunities in good areas with his patience and vision.
In his own zone, Luchanko is a pest to opposing puck handlers, buzzing around and breaking up plays with an active stick and quality defensive instincts. As he develops, he should only get better at positioning himself to break up offense and feeling the game out, combine that with his quickness, and he could become a constant nuisance to an opposing team’s best player.
If his time with the Canadian U-18 team is a more accurate reflection of his potential than his time with a mediocre Guelph team, he could be a steal at the end of round one. If Luchanko played for a juggernaut team like the London Knights, he more than likely would’ve put up significantly more points and increased his stock even higher. Food for thought.
What’s not to like?
While he is a pretty well rounded centerman, at 5’11 /183 he doesn’t have the same strong strudy frame as an elite two-way center like Stanley Cup Champion Sasha Barkov, and while that isn’t a deal-breaker, he will need to bulk up a bit to be a real workhorse.
His whole game isn’t dependent on it, but 20 goals as the best player on an OHL team does still leave a lot to be desired, and it does raise doubts on whether or not he will ever be able to contribute enough offensively to play in a team’s top six. It wouldn’t make or break his NHL future, but it would seriously cap his potential if he couldn’t find a way to score consistently.
There aren’t too many other gaping holes in Luchanko’s game, but it isn’t a certainty that he has any particularly “elite” traits that will make him a can’t miss prospect. Compare him to someone like Cole Beaudoin, for example. Both played at the U-18’s with Canada, both were used effectively as two-way centermen, and both are projected to go late in round one. Contending teams with picks late in round one looking at potential depth pieces may favour someone like Beaudoin, particularly in that role, due to his size being more fitting of a bottom-sixer.
How would he fit in the Flyers system?
Jett Luchanko has a lot of Scott Laughton-like qualities; a two-way stalwart who is capable with the puck and has a bit of jump in his step. He fits a similar mold, and given how John Tortorella likes his teams to play he would definitely welcome someone like Luchanko in his lineup who has a high motor and can handle the defensive responsibility. Additionally it would add some playmaking chops to an organization that lacks some of that at the center position, and add another penalty kill option to a unit that at times looked like a danger on offense. It would be adding another player of that mould to the bunch, with a chance to maybe get a very useful top-six center with for a long time. With a cool name.
Can the Flyers actually get him?
The Flyers have the 32nd pick, Luchanko could go earlier, some mocks have him going a bit higher, but there is still a very good possibility he could slip to Philadelphia to round out round one. It would also make sense from an organizational landscape, the Flyers need centers at every level of the roster.
What the scouts are saying
“Luchanko’s an average-sized player with above-average skill and impressive skating ability, but it’s his on-ice intelligence and knowhow that defines him. He’s also a superb athlete (one of the better in the draft), who performed exceedingly well at the combine. He understands timing, spacing and puck movement at a very advanced level, always finding his way into good spots.” – Scott Wheeler – The Athletic
“As a smaller forward, whether his offense is special enough is a minor question but it lessened for me over the course of the season. He looks like a potential third line center or second line wing.” – Corey Pronman – The Athletic
Previously on the 2024 BSH Community Draft Board
- Macklin Celebrini
- Ivan Demidov
- Artyom Levshunov
- Anton Silayev
- Cayden Lindstrom
- Sam Dickinson
- Zeev Buium
- Berkly Catton
- Zayne Parekh
- Konsta Helenius
- Tij Iginla
- Cole Eiserman
- Carter Yakemchuk
- Adam Jiricek
- Michael Brandsegg-Nygård
- Beckett Sennecke
- Liam Greentree
- Igor Chernyshov
- Sacha Boisvert
- Michael Hage
- Aron Kiviharju
- Andrew Basha
- Trevor Connelly
- Nikita Artamonov
- Ryder Ritchie
- Emil Hemming
- Cole Hutson
- Terik Parascak
- EJ Emery
- Charlie Elick
- Cole Beaudoin
- Teddy Stiga
- Jett Luchanko
