As the 2025 NHL Draft quickly approaches, a flurry of mocks have hit the internet — scouts and writers alike begin to try and figure out who is going where and when. But what all of these draft guides or mock first rounds are missing, is that the only thing that really matters is how those picks can benefit the Philadelphia Flyers.
Thus, with such a lack of Flyers-centric draft lists making the rounds, I figured it was time to put together a top-13 that is solely based around benefitting the Flyers, while also trying to remain attached to reality at least a little bit.
#1 Overall: The New York Islanders select… Matthew Schaefer (D), Erie Otters (OHL)
Schaefer has been the consensus top pick since 2025 began, and while a broken collarbone at the World Junior Championship derailed the lion’s share of his draft year, his elite skating and dynamic ability to move the puck at a high-level has separated him from the rest of the pack.
He is the one player in this draft with the potential to be a number one defenseman, and in a class lacking the slam-dunk Celebrini or Bedard level prospect from past years, that has proven to be enough to convince scouts his is worth the 1-1 selection.
Not much else to say about this pick; the Islanders need whatever good they can get, and this is a good first step to building something beyond the middling outfit they currently possess.
#2 Overall: The San Jose Sharks select… Michael Misa (C/LW), Saginaw Spirit (OHL)
The Sharks say thank you very much, and select another dynamic center to put behind Macklin Celebrini in Saginaw’s Michael Misa. I am a big fan of Misa’s expansive toolkit, and the lack of any real deficiencies in his game, in 65 OHL games, Misa torched the entire league while scoring nearly a goal-per-game, finishing with 62 tallies and 134 points to take the scoring title by a whole 10 points.
Misa plays a quality 200-foot game and is engaged in battles all over the ice, with or without the puck. He took on the full workload of a first line center, and performed admirably while showing that he will have the ability to play the position at the pro level.
This is another layup pick, this time for San Jose. With a crop of blue chip prospects already in the stable, Misa joins the aforementioned Celebrini to go along with guys like Will Smith and Sam Dickinson in what is a group of very high ceiling talents, and the Sharks jump all over what is to me, a very obvious selection.
#3 Overall: The Chicago Blackhawks select… Caleb Desnoyers (C), Moncton Wildcats (QMJHL)
This is where things begin to get very interesting. Instead of selecting the prototypical big winger to play alongside Connor Bedard in Porter Martone, it seems like Bedard’s current lack of a two-way game has convinced Chicago’s brass that the most pressing priority is acquiring a more well-rounded second-line center to play behind him. Desnoyers is boring but effective, and while his high-end ceiling may not necessarily be there on either end, his archetype as a long, rangy centerman that can play a 200-foot game is something that the Blackhawks seem to covet.
He slots in behind Bedard long term and offers a little bit more size than the former option, but this is still an instance where a team is prioritizing a perceived need over taking the most skilled player available. Desnoyers as an intelligent, less flashy workhorse is a pick that seems to address the worry that Bedard may not be able to develop some of those traits in the future. We will see if that pays off.
#4 Overall: The Utah Mammoth select… Anton Frondell (C), Djurgardens (HockeyAllsvenskan)
There is a good chance that these last two picks are interchangeable, with the Mammoth selecting whoever the Blackhawks don’t select to be a bit beefier of an option up the middle to compliment the slighter stature of Logan Cooley. Frondell can really rip a puck and has more potential as a goal scorer than Desnoyers does, despite maybe being a bit rawer. He fits well in Utah, who also could be well served taking Martone to ride shotgun alongside Cooley, Keller, or Dylan Guenther, but instead decide to prioritize size and potential up the middle behind Cooley.
Frondell will look to serve as the long term second-line center with a slight chance of maybe becoming something more. His production wasn’t anything unbelievable, and we will still have to see if he can keep scoring when he takes a step up to the Swedish first division. He left a bit to be desired after the Under-18 worlds, but that hasn’t put a damper on his value, and it seems like he is destined to either go three or four.
The league-wide trend of valuing the ability to play center continues, and some very talented players keep falling.
Flyers feeling after four selections:
The Flyers would be interested in Frondell’s services, and Desnoyers has been on their radar as well, especially with his brother Elliot still being in the organization, but from a pure talent standpoint this may be the best possible outcome. If this top four ends up becoming reality, which is actually very feasible, the Flyers would be guaranteed either the hulking Jason Robertson archetype in Martone, or the deft playmaker with high-end pedigree in Hagens. Either player is great value for the sixth selection, and it would ensure the Flyers come away with someone to be excited about.
#5 Overall: The Nashville Predators select… Porter Martone (RW), Brampton, (OHL)
Barry Trotz can’t resist the big talented winger to join a prospect pool that already consists of 6-foot-4 Matthew Wood and 6-foot-2 and extremely physical, Yegor Surin. If past drafts are anything to go off of, Nashville seems to have a type of player it likes to take early in drafts, before branching out and taking more swings on potential later on. Martone should be a pretty sure thing at the NHL level, he isn’t the best skater, but he does have a dogged work ethic on the forecheck, and unbelievable hands for someone his size.
Trotz liked teams that played heavy as a coach, and now as a general manager I doubt his philosophy has changed all that much.
#6 Overall: Your Philadelphia Flyers select… James Hagens (C), Boston College, (NCAA)
This tees the Flyers up to take a guy who at one point not all that long ago, was considered the best pick in this draft. Hagens ran the show all year during his time with the USNTDP U-18 team, scoring 102 points in 58 games and establishing himself as a truly elite talent.
His debut season at the college level with Boston College left some wanting more, however. That combined with his slighter frame of 5-foot-10.5 and 186 pounds has soured the opinion of enough scouts to make it plausible that he could fall to Philly at number six.
Thirty-seven points in 37 games in the NCAA is nothing to scoff at, and there is an argument that Hagens was sort of glossed over at BC and overshadowed by already drafted studs Gabe Perrault and Ryan Leonard. I also would submit the opinion that if he had played somewhere like the OHL or HockeyAllsvenskan, with a less physical style of play to adjust to and a much wider talent disparity, he would still be a lockdown top-three selection. The transition that he had to make, especially when compared to some of the other players drafted around him who were just returning to the Canadian Hockey League with an added year of experience, was difficult, and I wouldn’t be shocked to see him rip up the NCAA in his Draft+1 year.
#7 Overall: The Boston Bruins select… Brady Martin (C), Sault St. Marie (OHL)
The Bruins select a mean, nasty, honey badger of a forechecker, because of course they do. Martin has shot up draft boards after a great display at the U-18 worlds, and is a handful for opposing defenders. He has a motor that does not stop, and while he isn’t the most skilled player, He brings the work ethic and leadership of a potential 20-year pro.
Boston needs to replenish its cupboards after the remnants of its old guard have all moved on. Martin is a good start to rebuilding that classic Bruins culture that has sort of fallen apart as of recently. Fraser Minten and Martin as prospect centers in the same system seems a little redundant, but this is the sort of selection Boston would love to make, and if Martin gets to them, I think they do.
#8 Overall: The Seattle Kraken select… Jackson Smith (D), Tri-City (WHL)
Seattle supplements its D-corps after taking forwards with each of their first three selections in all three of the drafts in their history, and they take the highly mobile and smooth-skating Smith, who still has some work to do re: thinking the game quicker and moving the puck accordingly, but he does have a lot of the skills that teams covet in modern defensemen.
The Kraken are wandering through the wilderness with their back end, and I think this slot is where the run on defensemen may start.
#9 Overall: The Buffalo Sabres select… Radim Mrtka (D), Seattle (WHL)
The Sabres tries their hand at the Ristolainen experiment once again because they need size on the back end, and their franchise has no direction to speak of. Mrtka is a big body at 6-foot-5, and is the classic big, raw prospect that needs to develop the rest of his game in order to stick as a top-four NHL defender. Bowen Byram is a restricted free agent, and will probably be moved due to being redundant on a team with Rasmus Dahlin already manning the power play. And after drafting Konsta Helenius last year, they pivot to defense and try to shore up a very confusing NHL unit.
#10 Overall: The Anaheim Ducks select… Jake O’Brien (C), Brantford (OHL)
O’Brien slides to the double digits, but not past Anaheim who scoops up another skilled playmaker to add to its collection. Measuring in at the combine just a hair under 6-foot-2, the Ducks can at least know that will at least have another rangy frame up front to help diversify their forwards. The Ducks seemed to have trouble at times getting all of their young defensemen playing time at the NHL level, and still need some middle-six depth, O’Brien should help.
#11 Overall: The Pittsburgh Penguins select… Victor Eklund (RW), Djurgardens (HockeyAllsvenskan)
A very Kyle Dubas pick here, as they select a slam-dunk middle six winger with the potential to be even more. As Crosby and Malkin reach the end, building up the forward core for the future is the key focus, and Eklund offers a solid building block to start to build up the position that has been a strength for two decades. Playing alongside Frondell with Djurgardens, Eklund played with pace and urgency, offering a bit more forechecking pressure without some of the more elite offensive tools.
His brother William has provided a template as to what Victor can become at the next level with San Jose, and I feel as if the Pens will think they’re getting a real high floor bet without much risk. Dubas has come under fire early in his tenure, so playing it safe here makes sense from his standpoint, too.
#12 Overall: The New York Rangers select… Kashawn Aitcheson (D), Barrie (OHL)
The Rangers have long had an organizational love affair with a more rough-and-tumble playstyle, and Aitcheson brings that in spades. The most vicious hitter in the class by far, the Barrie defender plays a well-rounded game that is already pretty polished. Aitcheson’s stock has steadily risen while the playoffs continue to highlight the need for hyper mobile physicality at every position. K’Andre Miller looks set to be priced out of New York, and this pick offers up a pretty decent replacement. He can score from the point, make the difficult breakout passes, and if it all pans out, he should be a solid middle-pairing defenseman for years to come.
#13 Overall: Your Philadelphia Flyers select… Roger McQueen (WHL), Brandon (WHL)
TRADE:
Red Wings receive: 2025 22nd overall, 2025 31st overall, 2027 3rd round pick
Flyers receive: 2025 13th overall
Danny Briere makes his move to take a big swing on a big man. The Red Wings aren’t going to necessarily give this pick away, but in a draft where picks 10-25 are mostly down to preference, they feel comfortable with moving back eight slots to grab another couple picks. Jeff Petry is a free agent this summer, and with Ben Chiarot, Justin Holl, and Erik Gustafsson all set to be free agents next year (mercifully), the Red Wings only have Moritz Seider under contract on the back end past 2026-27.
With the consensus top three defensemen already off the board in this scenario, Detroit shifts their focus to names like Blake Fiddler and Cameron Reid, who will still likely be available later on in Round 1. For their troubles, they get a chance to double down on defensemen and add some more assets to their war chest down the road.
The Flyers, meanwhile, add a potentially game changing prospect who, if not for a health scare that may not even be as bad as previously thought, would be locked-in as a top-5 selection. McQueen is a 6-foot-5 center with silky smooth hands for his size, and who got more and more comfortable with his physical side after returning from a long absence due to a pars fracture in his back. McQueen has the skill set, smarts, and size to be an elite top-line center at the NHL level, and if it all comes together, this has the potential to be an absolute steal.
The Flyers would readily give up some of their surplus of picks if it meant getting not only one, but two, potential top-line players for the future. Both have the ability to play center, but if both pan out and reach something resembling their ultimate potential, one could bump over to the wing if needed and you wouldn’t necessarily feel the sting.
This first half of the first round has the potential to push the Flyers into a very exciting territory. That’s why it would make every single Flyers fan smile ear-to-ear.
