Youth is being served in Philadelphia and the Flyers – and their fanbase – should be excited heading into the 2025-26 season on all fronts.
The Flyers’ rebuild will be entering its third season under Daniel Brière and Keith Jones’ watch. After being named general manager and president of hockey operations, respectively, in the summer of 2023, the duo pledged a youthful infusion would be on the horizon but patience was required.
Fast forward to the start of the 2025-26 season, that youthful infusion will be on full display at both the NHL and AHL levels, not to mention junior circuits in North America and Europe. From Jett Luchanko to Porter Martone to Yegor Zavragin, the Flyers’ youth should be front and centre.
NHL
There’s going to be a few spots to win out in training camp for the Flyers, especially if Tyson Foerster isn’t ready to return after an elbow infection that stalled his offseason. However, after strong finishes to their individual campaigns in the AHL, Alex Bump and Nikita Grebenkin should push the hardest for spots on the opening night roster.
Bump, who was drafted in the 5th round of the 2022 NHL draft, excelled in his final season with Western Michigan University, delivering multiple accomplishments and accolades before finding his way on the Lehigh Valley Phantoms roster ahead of their playoff. He didn’t look out of sorts either with 3 points in 2 regular season games and an additional 2 goals in the postseason.
It didn’t end there for Minnesota native as he dominated Flyers development camp earlier this summer. While it wasn’t against NHL competition, Bump was shoulders above his own age-group, giving him a real leg up heading into a pivotal and important training camp.
As for Grebenkin, who was acquired from Toronto at the trade deadline, does have some NHL experience, which should bode well for his chances either outright through training camp or as the first name up as a recall in case of emergency or injury.
The Russian power-forward-in-the-making brings an interesting mix of physicality with a nose for the net, either as a net-front presence or jamming away at a loose puck. That was on display during his first full season in the KHL when he notched 41 points in 67 games as a 20-year-old before potting 28 points in 50 games in his first year in the AHL that was split between Toronto and Lehigh Valley.
Grebenkin brings a no-nonsense attitude, gets to the net any way he can, and uses his size to his advantage, which should come to use as a top-9 forward and a net front presence on either power play unit. It should also help that Maple Leafs head coach Craig Berube holds the youngster in high esteem, despite having just a short 7-game stint in the NHL last year.
Another interesting question mark will be regarding Luchanko’s availability. For the former first round pick from last summer, he will either make the NHL roster outright or return to the OHL and play for the Guelph Storm for the final time.
He made the opening night lineup last year, which was a shocking turn of events, and he made 4 scoreless appearances before returning to Guelph. Donning the ‘C’ for the first time, Luchanko scored 21 goals and 56 points in 46 games, while also adding 3 assists in 9 games for the Phantoms, and a goal during his time at the World Juniors with Team Canada.
Recently turned 19, Luchanko has shown the chops of sticking around with the NHL team but the issue becomes consistency and whether or not they want to risk it for an entire season. He won’t be able to be sent down to the AHL if he does make it outright, so the decision will have to be thoroughly thought through by the Flyers’ brass.
Another year of development won’t be the worst case scenario either as he can hone his craft in the OHL this year before joining the Phantoms at the end of the season in preparation to 2026-27, where he will more than likely be locked into a starting spot.
Beyond the three forwards, Emil Andrae will look to solidify his spot on the roster after an up-and-down 2024-25 season. The 23-year-old had a strong start to the year in his first stint with the Flyers but didn’t finish it off the way he would’ve had wanted to. Andrae did return to the Phantoms with a bang but left a lot to be desired heading into the new season.
With question marks surrounding Rasmus Ristolainen’s status for opening night, that should leave the door wide open for Andrae, although he will be fighting for a spot alongside Egor Zamula, Noah Juulsen, and Dennis Gilbert, with the latter two having been signed as depth defenders on July 1st.
With Travis Sanheim, Cam York, Jamie Drysdale, and Nick Seeler locked in as the top-4, two spots remain going into training camp if Ristolainen remains on the sideline. Zamula has 129 games under his belt from the last 2 seasons, and Juulsen has experience playing under Rick Tocchet and can be seen as a reliable 6th defenseman, leaving Andrae needing to have a strong camp to stand above the rest.
AHL
In the AHL, the Phantoms will be welcoming newcomers in forward Denver Barkey, defenseman Oliver Bonk, and goaltender Carson Bjarnason. Additionally, forwards Karsen Dorwart and Devin Kaplan should see ample playing time and returnees like Hunter McDonald, Helge Grans, and Samu Tuomaala will be expected to rise to the occasion once again after solid individual campaigns in 2024-25.
Barkey and Bonk will be coming into the season off the rush of winning the Memorial Cup as well as successive OHL championships with the London Knights. Both prospects played a major role all season, one in which the Knights ran through the playoffs with just one loss, which included 3 sweeps leading to the championship round.
Bonk, more so seen as a very safe top-4 defender in the coming years, sort of had to step back a little with San Jose Sharks prospect Sam Dickinson taking full control as the Knights’ 1D. Nevertheless, Bonk recorded 40 points in 52 regular season games and another 14 in 17 postseason contests, despite hitting the 60-point mark the previous year.
With the Phantoms, Bonk might need some time to adjust to the professional ranks, but at some point during the season, expect a bigger role for the 22nd overall selection from the 2023 NHL draft. Adding Bonk to a backend with McDonald, Grans, and Adam Ginning should spell for some exciting times in Lehigh Valley.
As for Barkey, the captain of the Knights in 2024-25, he brings a level of tenacity, excitement, and feistiness we’ve come to love from Travis Konecny over the years. The third round pick from the 2023 draft recorded 102 points in his draft+1 season and was primed to topple that this year had it not been for injuries.
He still managed 82 points in 50 games before adding 20 points in just 10 playoff games. His chemistry with Toronto Maple Leafs prospect Easton Cowan was off the charts, especially on the power play, where the duo did a lot of damage over the last 2 seasons.
Similarly to Bonk, Barkey might need some time to adjust to his competition, but will be a key contributor down the road as a top-6 forward with a power play role.
Finally we look at the all-important goaltending position, which will now be headlined by Bjarnason – and perhaps some combination of Aleksei Kolosov and Ivan Fedotov.
After several solid campaigns with the Brandon Wheat Kings, Bjarnason will be making his professional debut with the Phantoms in some capacity, however who his competition will be remains to be seen. Fedotov is expected to be waived for the purpose of reassignment and the Flyers are apparently expecting Kolosov to report to the AHL, despite his apprehension from last season.
Newly minted head coach John Snowden is going to have the benefit of working with a lot of talented prospects that the Flyers are hoping will make an impact in the near future.
From the arrivals of Barkey, Bonk, and Bjarnason to the returnees in Grans and McDonald, as well as the possibility of Bump and/or Grebenkin starting in the minors, we should all be keeping a close eye on the Phantoms this season.
Even beyond the two professional ranks, the Flyers have a litany of prospects to follow at the junior level as well. Martone will be representing Michigan State this year after playing for Brampton out of the OHL last year.
Second rounders from this past draft Carter Amico, Shane Vansaghi, and Jack Murtagh will all be playing key roles for the respective NCAA outfits, as well as Finnish up-and-comer Heikki Ruohonen who will be playing for Harvard University. Meanwhile, second rounder Matthew Gard will look to improve on his 19 goals with the Red Deer Rebels in the WHL.
Out in Europe, Zavragin will look to continue his steady development as the potential starting netminder for SKA St. Petersburg in the KHL, Jack Berglund will try to stake his claim further for Färjestad BK in the SHL, and Finnish forward Max Westergård will be hoping to make an imprint in the SHL at some point this season for Frölunda HC.
There are plenty of prospects to follow, plenty of leagues to watch, and a lot of excitement to be had. This doesn’t even include the likes of Drysdale, Matvei Michkov, and Trevor Zegras, who should all have major roles for the Flyers in 2025-26.
