It’s that time of year again, folks! The Flyers punctuated something of a wild season with an impressive playoff push, all things considered, even if it did come to a close a little sooner than they would have liked. All the same, they did a lot of good work with that appearance to boost the standing of the team in the city, and build up the optimism surrounding their trajectory again. Now, with the 2025-26 season in the rearview, we’re shifting our focus again to the future, and how they’ll continue to build up their next good team through the draft.
The Flyers aren’t positively loaded up with picks in the same way that they were last year, with just one first-round pick at their disposal, but that won’t make their draft any less interesting, with all of the other capital at their disposal keeping the door open to make things interesting. We’ll see before too long how they approach this, but for now, we’re diving deep into draft prep. So, without further ado, we’re here to introduce this year’s BSH Community Draft Board!
If you’ve been around the block with us before, you know the drill by now, but for anyone who’s new to this whole thing, here’s your rundown: Over the next month and change, we’ll be profiling a player just about every day, working our way through the whole of the first round, getting to know some of the players in the immediate range of the Flyers’ pick in the early 20s, but also the players fanning out farther than that range, as they have the capital between other picks and surplus roster players, we recall, to get a little wild and move around in this draft, so it’s worth getting into the broadest range of players that we can.
And as for what order are those players going in, with this series? Well, that’s up to you (yes, you!) to decide. We’re all coming together here to collaborate a bit and learn a whole lot about these top draft prospects, with the aim, of course, of becoming the smartest person at our draft party. What more could you want?
We’ll kick things off with our first overall pick on Monday, and while we have an inkling of who that’s going to be, it’s still up for voting. Let’s meet our first options, shall we?
Gavin McKenna – LW – Penn State (NCAA)
“McKenna is a flowing skater with corner speed more than straight line speed (he lacks explosiveness in straight bursts), great edges and an ability to make plays at whatever pace is required — with a preference for slowing things down, at times to a fault. He’s impressive at carrying and dodging sticks through neutral ice to create entries. He has a first touch like glue, where the puck just lands and sticks to his blade when he’s catching it, even when it’s coming in hot or into compromising positions. He’s an excellent puck transporter and get-out-of-jail-free card who can skate pucks out of the zone himself and relieve pressure (though I’d like to see him be lower for that more often instead of cheating up ice). McKenna is extremely shifty with the puck, blending shoulder fakes into his playmaking. He has impressive maneuverability and adjustability from his hips down. He plays pucks into space and leads guys at an advanced level. He shields pucks well from defenders’ sticks when he can play in open ice and they try to close on him. He’s constantly changing directions and keeping defenders off him. He pre-scans and sees and reads the game at an elite level. The elements of a brilliant perimeter playmaker are all there.”
-Scott Wheeler, The Athletic
Ivar Stenberg – LW/RW – Frölunda HC (SHL)
“Stenberg has consistently been such an impressive all-around player this year and after seeing so much of him, I am still not exactly sure why he’s so impressive. His forechecking energy and turnover generation ability is awesome, tracking play with ease at the SHL level. His skill level may not match that of a Gavin McKenna, but the way which he uses it is so much more practical and effective in tougher scenarios. Knocking pucks down through feet and traffic, attacking players head on, protecting the puck down low, creating tight space for himself, it’s all there. the margins here between my first two tiers has gotten tighter and tighter over the last few weeks as I finish datasets on some other names, but Stenberg would probably be my choice first in what would be a strong top end of a solid draft class. He doesn’t waste his shots from the perimeter, he’s an excellent transition driver with diverse talents and a propensity for good stick checks, and if he can just improve his explosiveness to add another two-way dimension to his game as he has over the last 12 months, he could be a fantastic add to the top line of an NHL team in the mold of a Seth Jarvis-esque player with excellent value in many areas of the ice in many situations outside of raw point production.”
-Will Scouch, Scouching
Keaton Verhoeff – D – Univ. of North Dakota (NCAA)
“Verhoeff is a big two-way defenseman. He’s a strong skater, especially for his size. He isn’t flashy, nor is he overly creative offensively, but he has good skill, sees the ice well and makes difficult plays with a great point shot that will be a threat in the NHL. His decision-making at times can leave you wanting, though. He’s hard on his checks and uses his size. In college, he wasn’t a hard minutes defenseman this season, but he has been at the junior level, and he was a 17-year-old on a top college team. He projects as a tough-minutes top-pair defenseman in the NHL who could score at a quality clip.”
-Corey Pronman, The Athletic
Chase Reid – D – Soo Greyhounds (OHL)
“I think there isn’t a better straight line puck rusher in this draft, outside of maybe Xavier Villeneuve. He has an explosive skating ability that can build speed through the neutral zone with good skill in combination, using his frame to protect the puck effectively, and using his feet to patrol the neutral zone with ease. He’s efficient off the puck, with good shutdown ability and solid blueline defending results, but he largely achieves these results without close-quarters physical contact, and that’s where I find Reid’s game falters somewhat. Faster, more skilled OHLers have found their way through his physical pressure more often than others in this range. His offensive output also relies on perimeter shooting more than I’d like, especially when there is some good playmaking ability if he takes a step up from the blueline. He’s an intriguing package that reminds me a bit of a Morgan Rielly type, and say what you will of his game at his age now, but Rielly had a very good, long run as a legitimate top four NHL rushing defenseman with blueline-based offensive ability and powerplay upside.”
-Will Scouch, Scouching
And there we have it! And all that’s left is for you to cast your vote. First overall pick, who’ve you got?
