Flyers Draft Porter Martone: Pick Grade, Instant Reaction
The Philadelphia Flyers hit a home run Friday night, picking winger Porter Martone sixth overall atop the 2025 NHL Draft.
Martone, 18, featured alongside future Flyers teammates Travis Sanheim, Tyson Foerster, and Travis Konecny whilst playing for Canada during the 2025 World Championships last month.
Advertisement
But, playing with and against NHL caliber players wasn't Martone's only feat of excellence on the international stage recently.
The Flyers' newest top prospect stood out to Danny Briere and the Philly brass at the 2024 U18 Men's World Championships last year, scoring five goals, 12 assists, and 17 points in seven games, captaining his nation to a gold medal and finishing third in the tournament in scoring behind only James Hagens and teammate Gavin McKenna.
The 18-year-old scored 37 goals, 61 assists, and 98 points in 57 games with the Brampton Steelheads this season, also captaining the OHL outfit. Martone is a sniper, a natural leader, and a developing, skilled playmaker with room to grow, literally and figuratively.
NHL Draft 2025: Can (or should) the Flyers draft Porter Martone?
NHL Draft 2025: Can (or should) the Flyers draft Porter Martone? With a guaranteed top six pick in the 2025 NHL Draft, the Philadelphia Flyers have an array of potentially franchise-altering options at their disposal. But is Porter Martone, a winger in the purest sense, one of them?
Advertisement
At 6-foot-3, Martone brings the size the Flyers lack, especially at the winger position. Konecny, Matvei Michkov, and Bobby Brink are all shorter than 6-foot, though it's reasonable to assume someone will eventually have to move to make space for Martone in the NHL lineup.
Grade: A
Martone is a big, sometimes physical player who plays a lot like Michkov and Matthew Tkachuk in terms of his playmaking and the way he sees the game.
The dreaded Flyers power play is a major factor as to why they had such a high pick to begin with, and Martone, even at his current age, would provide a massive boost there alongside fellow newcomer Trevor Zegras.
Advertisement
He'll shoot, pass, take one-timers, and get to the front of the net all the same, and the Flyers have too many players who do only one of those things.
Martone will have to get bigger, stronger, and meaner to live up to the Tkachuk comparisons, but the skill level is already so high.
The logistics complicate things, but Martone turns 19 on Oct. 26, shortly after opening night. Conceivably, he could be an NHL player with the talent, maturity, and size he has.
But should you do it because you can? The Flyers will answer that in due time, but with the sixth pick in the NHL Draft, they landed the best winger, and one of the best offensive talents, by far.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
13 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Juventus seal move for Jonathan David
After an extremely long period of contacts and negotiations, Juventus have completed their pursuit of former Lille forward and Canadian international Jonathan David, sealing their first signing of the 2025/26 season. Giovanni Albanese of La Gazzetta dello Sport reports that the Bianconeri have acquired the 25-year-old on a multi-year contract worth €6m per-season, with additional bonuses of €2m. Advertisement David has been the main topic of the transfer market thus far as the well-documented forward was available on a free transfer at the end of the season after deciding not to renew his contract with Lille, ending his five-year stay at the French giants. The clinical finisher had a stellar campaign, ending the season with a total of 25 goals and 12 assists in 49 games-played across all competitions, proving to be a pivotal asset up-top. Hence, the Canadian forward has attracted numerous suitors such as Inter, Napoli, Milan, PSG, Arsenal, Liverpool, Man United, Chelsea, Tottenham, and Bayern Munich. Despite the immense competition for David's signature, the Bianconeri managed to overcome the European giants in acquiring the 25-year-old forward's services, and are now prepared to let attacking pair Dusan Vlahovic and Arkadiusz Milik depart the club to make room in the attacking department. Julian Faustini Ι GIFN
Yahoo
20 minutes ago
- Yahoo
K'Andre Miller is eager for his new start after trade from New York Rangers to Carolina Hurricanes
K'Andre Miller kept his phone off and avoided social media in recent weeks with his future uncertain after five seasons with the New York Rangers. Now, he's eager to jump into the Carolina Hurricanes' aggressive system. Advertisement The Hurricanes acquired the 25-year-old former first-round pick to bolster their blue line and gave him a long-term contract Tuesday, the first official day of free agency. He joins a team that has made seven straight playoff trips and is coming off a third trip to the Eastern Conference final in that span. Carolina has a headlining defenseman in Jaccob Slavin, but is retooling that group with veterans Brent Burns and Dmitry Orlov unlikely to return. The tweaks trading away defenseman Scott Morrow — a rising prospect pressed into playoff duty due to injuries — and draft picks to New York to land Miller. 'They have such a fast team,' Miller said Wednesday in a Zoom call with reporters. 'They get up and down the ice in a fast motion and they do everything as a team. It's a fun group to watch and they've had a lot of success recently. So I'm excited to join that style of game, and they have a great team over there.' The Hurricanes project the 6-foot-5, 210-pound Miller as a strong fit with his size and skating ability. They're counting on him to bolster a system that relies on an aggressive forecheck to pressure opponents, get control of the puck and keep it to maintain pressure in the offensive zone. Advertisement The Hurricanes are betting Miller is still on the rise, handing him an eight-year contract paying an average annual value of $7.5 million through the 2032-33 season. There were certainly flashes of it with the Rangers as a regular Metropolitan Division foe for the Hurricanes. The No. 22 overall pick in 2018 by the Rangers has played at least 74 regular-season games for four straight seasons, including posting 17 goals and 56 assists for 73 points over the 2022-23 and 2023-24 seasons. But his play fell off last season as he went from looking like a Rangers building block to expendable, coming amid New York's overall crash from Presidents' Trophy winner in 2024 to six points out of a wild-card playoff spot this year. Afterward, Miller tried to tune out 'all the speculation and kind of noise and uncertainty with New York." That meant focusing instead on getting stronger and getting mentally prepared for what's next. Advertisement And now, that's a new start. 'I think there was a lot of noise throughout the season,' Miller said. 'So I think it was definitely in the back of my head that something could happen, might happen. I loved my time in New York and it was great, but I'm excited for what's to come in Carolina.' ___ AP NHL:
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Cowboys Almost-Coach Kellen Moore Given 'Nightmare' Prediction in New Job
Cowboys Almost-Coach Kellen Moore Given 'Nightmare' Prediction in New Job originally appeared on Athlon Sports. FRISCO - The Dallas Cowboys are delighted with their hire of first-time head coach Brian Schottenheimer. But they came this-close to hiring another guy with familiarity here inside The Star ... Advertisement And now Kellen Moore is dealing with "nightmare'' predictions at his new job. The Jerry Jones-led offseason search for a replacement for Mike McCarthy was not a wide-net far-reaching one. It largely focused on Schottenheimer (who was McCarthy's offensive coordinator) and Moore (who had the same job here before Schotty). Moore jumped/was pushed two years ago and worked with the Chargers in 2023 ... and Schotty worked here with Dak Prescott as the QB finished second in NFL MVP voting. Then in 2024, the Philadelphia Eagles brought on Moore. ... and that worked out in the best conceivable way. The former Dallas offensive coordinator helped unleash running back Saquon Barkley last season, and guided quarterback Jalen Hurts to an MVP in Philly's dominance of the Kansas City Chiefs in last February's Super Bowl LIX. Advertisement As his reward, Kellen interviewed here but then eventually landed the head coaching job with the New Orleans Saints. (Ironically, as we understand it, beating out McCarthy, among others). The party is over, however. The projections are rolling in. And according to the oddsmakers, the Saints - coming off a 5-12 season - have the lowest projected win total of any team in the NFL at 4.5. Ouch. 'A successful season as Eagles OC led Kellen Moore to a head coaching position, but he could be in for a nightmare season,' USA Today writes. 'His best quarterback had health concerns. Then, he retired. Rookie quarterback Tyler Shough will need to get up to speed quickly, or we could be in for another run by Spencer Rattler.' Advertisement Moore turns 37 on July 5, so he still qualifies as "one of the brightest young offensive minds in pro football,'' as is so often written. But he doesn't have Dak and CeeDee Lamb anymore. Nor does he have Barkley and Hurts and A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith. He has, in New Orleans' offense, Alvin Kamara and Chris Olave and little else. The Eagles should be great again. The Cowboys think they'll be good. The Saints? they will likely be favored only four times all season, at best: twice against the lowly Carolina Panthers and Week 16 and 17 games against the New York Jets and Tennessee Titans. There are only 32 of these jobs, and Moore was due to get one. But the challenge is now about the avoidance of a "nightmare'' in the Big Easy. Advertisement Related: Brian Schottenheimer Culture Helping Cowboys George Pickens Plan Related: Cowboys Insider Questions Mike Florio 'Rumor Logic' on Brian Schottenheimer This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jul 1, 2025, where it first appeared.
