Will the Broad Street Bullies be back? Flyers go big at the NHL draft
By the time the Philadelphia Flyers are legitimate contenders again a few years down the road, they could have a lineup that makes the 1970s Broad Street Bullies proud.
Five of their eight selections in the NHL draft stand 6-foot-3 or taller, including first-rounders Porter Martone and Jack Nesbitt. They overlooked smaller talent to get a hulking winger in Martone at No. 6 and traded up for Nesbitt, a 6-5 center, with the 12th pick.
'It's a nice bonus that they're both tall and will bring us size, as well,' general manager Daniel Briere said. 'It just kind of worked out that way. It wasn't a plan that we had in mind going into the draft that we wanted to get bigger. It just happened that way.'
Philadelphia's second-rounders were 6-6, 232-pound defenseman Carter Amico and a trio of nice-sized forwards: Jack Murtagh, Shane Vansaghi and Matthew Gard. Murtagh described himself as 'a high-end workhorse.'
Their second fifth-round pick, Luke Vlooswyk, called himself 'a big defensive, defenseman.' He said Gard, a teammate with the Western Hockey League's Red Deer Rebels, is 'a big kid like me.'
Bulking up the prospect pool makes sense for the Flyers, who have a lot of smaller talent in the system, from budding star Matvei Michkov already on the roster to 2024 first-rounder Jett Luchanko, who played four games for them last season. They also just traded for 6-foot center Trevor Zegras and could use some size in their not-too-distant future.
Bloodlines
After William Horcoff, whose dad Shawn spent 15 seasons in the NHL, went 24th to Pittsburgh in the first round, Day 2 of the draft was full of the sons and nephews of retired players hearing their names called.
It started with Seattle trading up to get Blake Fiddler, son of Vernon, early in the second round. Eric Nilson, son of Marcus, went a handful of picks later to Anaheim.
There were more familiar names picked in the third round: Artyom Gonchar, nephew of 2009 Stanley Cup champion Sergei Gonchar, to the New York Rangers, and Blake Vanek, son of Thomas, to Ottawa.
Italian history
After Simon Wang became the highest-ranked China-born NHL draft pick when San Jose chose him at No. 33, Matous Jan Kucharcik made some Italian hockey history.
Taken by Buffalo 103rd, Kucharcik is a Czech national but became the fourth player born in Italy to be selected.
___
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
23 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Jake Fischer reveals ‘Chinese Jokic' comp from Nuggets for surprise Blazers pick
The post Jake Fischer reveals 'Chinese Jokic' comp from Nuggets for surprise Blazers pick appeared first on ClutchPoints. The Portland Trail Blazers stunned the entire NBA world when they drafted Hansen Yang, the 7'2″ Chinese international, with the 16th overall pick of the 2025 NBA Draft. Yang was projected by most talent evaluators to go in the second round. Instead, the Blazers scooped him up nearly 30 spots before many thought he'd go — prompting a barrage of reactions. Advertisement For what it's worth, Yang put up pretty dominant stats in the Chinese Basketball Association in his two-year stint with the Qingdao Eagles. In 96 career games, the 20-year-old big man averaged 15.8 points, 10.7 rebounds, and 3.5 assists per game while shooting 56.9 percent from the field. He even flashed some three-point shooting ability, having made 23 of his 79 tries from beyond the arc. Still, Yang's mobility issues put quite a cap on his ceiling. While other executives cannot quite comprehend why the Blazers would make this pick, one person close to the Denver Nuggets texted 'Chinese Jokic' to The Stein Line's Jake Fischer regarding the 20-year-old international prospect. Comparing Yang to Jokic is preposterous, although little did everyone know back in 2014 that Jokic would end up blossoming into one of the greatest players of all-time for the Nuggets, winning three MVP awards and a title thus far in his career. And it's not like Jokic is done dominating the NBA, as he's only 30 years of age. Back in 2014, scouts had concerns regarding Jokic's defense, lack of agility and verticality, and they questioned his fitness levels — with Jokic still having a habit of downing cola soda bottles like they were water. But Jokic took his development seriously, and by the time his third season came around, he was a full-time starter who was already putting it together. Advertisement Alas, comparing anyone to Jokic is a fool's game. The most important thing for Yang is that he acclimates to the speed of the NBA game as soon as possible to make the Blazers look golden. Blazers get their man… but at a cost © Brad Penner-Imagn Images The Blazers could have drafted Yang in the second round, but they decided to get their man as soon as they could. They traded down from 11 to 16 (getting a 2028 first-round pick from the Memphis Grizzlies in the process) and did not want to let Yang slip away further. Only time will tell if the Blazers prove to be one step ahead of the competition. But the opportunity cost of reaching to get Yang instead of hoping he slips towards the end of the second round is too difficult to ignore. Related: Blazers stun NBA world with 7-foot-1 Chinese star after trade Related: Grizzlies land rising star Cedric Coward in No. 11 pick trade with Blazers
Yahoo
24 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Blazers GM reacts to ‘Chinese Jokic' comp for shocking pick
The post Blazers GM reacts to 'Chinese Jokic' comp for shocking pick appeared first on ClutchPoints. The first round of the 2025 NBA Draft is in the books, and the most surprising selection of the night belonged to the Portland Trail Blazers. With the No. 16 overall pick, the Trail Blazers selected Chinese center Yang Hansen, despite the fact he was not expected to get picked until the second round of the draft. After the first round concluded, general manager Joe Cronin weighed in on a unique comparison Hansen was receiving. Advertisement Hansen spent the past two seasons playing for the Qingdao Guoxin Aquatic Products in the Chinese Basketball Association. In his most recent campaign, he averaged 16.6 points, 10.5 rebounds, and three assists per game while shooting 58.6% from the field. With his game closely mirroring that of Denver Nuggets superstar center Nikola Jokic, several folks began to label Hansen 'Chinese Jokic.' While Cronin is a big fan of Hansen, he wasn't ready to go that far just yet. 'Nobody's Jokic. That's a tough one. But as far as his ability to pass the ball, there aren't many at his size that can do it like he does,' Cronin said per Sean Highkin of The Rose Garden Report. Joe Cronin, Trail Blazers hoping Yang Hansen pans out after surprise selection © Brad Penner-Imagn Images Hansen certainly has upside, but many folks were stunned to see Portland select him this early in the draft. Whenever you are drawing comparisons to Jokic, though, that's usually a good sign. Cronin doesn't want to put that sort of pressure on his new center, though, especially considering he's already going to have more eyes on him than usual considering the circumstances surrounding his selection. Advertisement As of right now, the Trail Blazers do not have another pick in the 2025 draft, although that could change if they were to make a trade at some point on Thursday. Assuming they don't, though, the front office will turn their attention towards free agency, where they will look to build up their team in hopes of taking a big step forward next season. Related: Jake Fischer reveals 'Chinese Jokic' comp from Nuggets for surprise Blazers pick Related: Blazers stun NBA world with 7-foot-1 Chinese star after trade
Yahoo
34 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Predators trade Colton Sissons, Jeremy Lauzon to Vegas for Nicolas Hague
The Nashville Predators are trading defenseman Jeremy Lauzon and center Colton Sissons to the Vegas Golden Knights in exchange for defenseman Nicolas Hague according to a report by TSN's Darren Dreger. In the deal, the Predators acquire Hague, a 26-year-old left-handed defenseman. He is a restricted free agent coming off a three-year, $6.8 million contract with Vegas. Advertisement According to another report by Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman, Hague is signing a four-year, $5.5 million extension with the Predators. Hague is a 6-foot-6, 245-pound defenseman who scored five goals and seven assists in 68 games with the Golden Knights last season. Since being drafted in the second round by Vegas in 2017, Hague has 20 goals and 63 assists in 364 career games. By acquiring Hague, the Predators get younger on the back end. By trading Sissons, they open up some cap space to sign Hague to an extension. NO. 5 PICK: Nashville Predators select forward Brady Martin with No. 5 overall pick in 2025 NHL Draft Advertisement Neither the Predators nor Golden Knights have confirmed the full details of the trade. Sissons, 31, has played 11 seasons with the Predators since being drafted in the second round in 2012. He has 95 goals and 126 assists in 690 games as a defense-first center. The highlight of his Predators' career was scoring a hat trick in the series clinching victory over the Anaheim Ducks in the Western Conference Final in 2017. Lauzon has played 187 games with Nashville since acquired via trade with Seattle in 2021. A heavy-hitting defenseman, Lauzon has 14 goals and 31 assists in 316 career games. Alex Daugherty is the Predators beat writer for The Tennessean. Contact Alex atjdaugherty@ Follow Alex on X, the platform formerly called Twitter, @alexdaugherty1. Also check out our Predators exclusive Instagram page @tennessean_preds. This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Predators trade Colton Sissons, Jeremy Lauzon to Vegas for Nicolas Hague
