Philadelphia Flyers 2025 Top 25 Under 25, No. 8: Oliver Bonk

Welcome to Broad Street Hockey’s Summer 2025 Top Under 25! The series is back and with the Philadelphia Flyers focusing so much on the future, it’s more important than ever. Join us as we rank the 25 best players under the age of 25 for the next few weeks.

2024-25 Primary League/Team: London Knights (OHL)
2024-25 Statistics: 11 G, 29 A in 52 GP
Age as of 9/2/2025: 20
Acquired Via: 2023 NHL Draft — Round 1, Pick 22

Coming in at No. 8 on our Top 25, Oliver Bonk enters the list as the top defense prospect in the system.

After a breakout season in 2023-24, where Bonk notched 67 points in 60 OHL games, Bonk’s expectations heading into his third full OHL season with London were sky-high. Combined with fellow Flyers prospect Denver Barkey, the duo continued to make London a must-watch for the future of the Flyers organization, as the Knights notched their second consecutive OHL championship.

How did Bonk’s 2024-25 season go? Is his stock trending up or down from where it was entering the year?

Bonk’s 2024-25 season was a bit of a mixed bag, especially compared to his 2023-24. His point production went down, as the “Bumper Bonk” power play production couldn’t keep up with the previous year’s output. In 2024-25, Bonk notched 15 power play goals, an unsustainable number for most defenseman of Bonk’s caliber. He followed up with only 5 power play goals this year, as the Bumper Bonk experiment expectedly didn’t produce the same results.

Besides the power play, it was a bit of an up-and-down year for Bonk on the whole. He was a major piece of the blueline on Canada’s World Juniors team, and he excelled in parts of that tournament for his consistent defensive play, particularly in utilizing his reach to aggressively shut down rushes. The same thing happened with his play in London – he remained an important player for the Knights, particularly with his defensive consistency – but the offense was certainly lacking compared to the previous season. If anything, Bonk took a back seat to 2024 San Jose first-round pick Sam Dickinson, who registered 91 points in 55 games and took down the biggest offensive situations for London. Bonk was still the steady, puck-moving guy that the Flyers expected when they drafted him, but the offensive jump the Flyers hoped he took in 2024 seemed to be a false flag.

Heading into this season, his stock appears to have stagnated a bit within the fanbase, but the organization remains really high on Bonk as really the only blue chip defensive prospect in the system. A lot of the hype surrounding Bonk will be dependent on his performance in rookie camp, preseason, and the AHL – but there’s still quite a lot to like about the player.

What are we expecting from Bonk this season? What should we be looking for from him?

Bonk is moving to the pros this season, and we’re expecting quite a bit from him in his first season in the AHL. He’s going to have a longshot chance at making the Flyers out of camp, but that would likely require an injury on the Flyers blueline, as well as an exceedingly great camp from Bonk.

What’s more likely? Bonk spends the entire year in the AHL with the Phantoms, and he takes down some big minutes – potentially alongside Hunter McDonald. We assume Phantoms Head Coach John Snowden will give him tons of runway in adjusting to the pro game, while playing Bonk in as many minutes as he can.

There will be some really interesting things to track with Bonk this season. For one, considering it will be the hallmark of Oliver Bonk’s game if he translates to the NHL level, his ability to put himself into advantageous positions in the defensive zone is going to be essential. His hockey IQ and defensive positioning is the most important quality of Bonk’s playing style, and we’ll see if it’ll translate from the OHL to the AHL. Look out for Bonk’s ability to stomp out offensive rushes, end plays, and move the puck out of the zone. If he begins to do that at a high rate, it’ll be clear that Bonk has adjusted to the pace of the pro game and might be ready for a step in the NHL.

The offense, on the other hand, might come a bit later for Bonk in his development. We’d expect the Phantoms to at least try Bonk on the power play, and maybe in the bumper position. If he can get a little closer to the 2023-24 version on the offensive side, that projects really well for Bonk in the NHL. It’s much more likely that Bonk shines in a more subtle, puck-moving role though, which makes his projection as a second-pairing defenseman relatively simple.

How does Bonk fit in the Flyers’ rebuild? Is it likely he’s going to be a part of the next good Flyers team?

Ever since Bonk was picked as the Flyers’ second first-rounder in the Matvei Michkov draft, he’s long been labelled as the “safe” pick the Flyers used to counterbalance the then-risky Michkov selection. To this moment in the rebuilding process, Bonk remains the highest-drafted defenseman in the whole plan, and he’s relied upon to turn into a key part of the Flyers’ blueline moving forward. NHL time might even come this year, as Bonk is going to have a longshot chance to make the Flyers out of camp, and a pretty decent shot at playing with the big club in March/April, if Bonk’s AHL play warrants a callup. He’s pretty crucial to the Flyers’ plan on the backend overall, and slots pretty nicely next to Sanheim-York-Drysdale in the Flyers future top-4. We’ll see, but all signs indicate the Flyers really want Bonk to be on the next good Flyers squad.

What do we think Bonk’s ultimate NHL upside is, and how likely is it that he gets to something approaching that?

Eventually, Bonk’s long-term NHL upside seems to fall in the range of a steady No. 2 defenseman. If everything goes right, Bonk’s a big, decent-skating, disruptive blueliner with tons of hockey sense. The best version of Bonk “Bumper Bonk” offensive skills translate into a consistent 30-40 points, and next to a legit No. 1, Bonk could be a valuable part of a top pair. However, we’re not sure how likely this No. 2 outcome actually is, as there’s a considerable chance that the offense Bonk showed in juniors doesn’t translate, especially on the power play. Even if the scoring doesn’t translate, the rest of Bonk’s game should be enough for him to become a second-pair guy. We’ll see, but there’s a pretty high floor with Bonk.

Previously in Philadelphia Flyers Summer 2025 Top 25 Under 25:

Talking Points