Latest news with #PorterMartone
USA Today
2 days ago
- Sport
- USA Today
WATCH: Top 10 NHL Draft pick Porter Martone talks why he chose to go to MSU next season
Michigan State hockey landed a big-time commitment last week in Porter Martone, and on Sunday he further discussed his reasoning for choosing the Spartans. Martone is currently at the World Juniors Summer Showcase in Minneapolis representing Canada, and caught up with reporters on Sunday evening. During the interview, he spoke on why he elected to go the college route and come to Michigan State next season. "Going to Michigan State is my next step in my hockey journey," Martone told reporters. "It's going to help me develop into a full player, get some more time in the gym. I really like the culture they have there. I really like the coaching staff, but with saying that it wasn't an easy decision to leave Brampton." "I'm going to go and try to win a national championship." Martone was the No. 6 overall pick in the NHL Entry Draft last month by the Philadelphia Flyers. He is considered a top tier prospect for the professional level and should have an instant impact for the Spartans next season. Watch the full interview with the future Spartans star below -- courtesy of FloHockey: Contact/Follow us @The SpartansWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Michigan State news, notes and opinion. You can also follow Robert Bondy on X @RobertBondy5.
Yahoo
7 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Flyers Wrap: Porter Martone Off to College, What's Next?
Just as everyone expected, top Philadelphia Flyers prospect Porter Martone has elected to go the college route, committing to Michigan State on Monday. But, what's next?
Yahoo
23-07-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Flyers Wrap: Porter Martone Off to College, What's Next?
Just as everyone expected, top Philadelphia Flyers prospect Porter Martone has elected to go the college route, committing to Michigan State on Monday. But, what's next?
New York Times
22-07-2025
- Sport
- New York Times
Flyers support top prospect Porter Martone's decision to attend Michigan State
Riley Armstrong already has the dates lodged in his brain. On Oct. 17 and 18, the Michigan State Spartans will face off against the Boston University Terriers at Agganis Arena in Boston, in a pair of games that will feature a whole bunch a Philadelphia Flyers prospects. That includes their top prospect Porter Martone, selected sixth overall by the Flyers in last month's draft, and who declared on Monday that he'll be attending Michigan State in the fall. He'll join fellow 2025 Flyers draft pick Shane Vansaghi on the Spartans, who that weekend will visit 2025 second-round picks Carter Amico and Jack Murtagh and 2021 seventh-round pick Owen McLaughlin on the Terriers. 'That's like half of our pool right there,' Armstrong, the Flyers' director of player development, joked on Tuesday. A post shared by PM94 (@portermartone94) Martone joining Michigan State made headlines earlier this week not only because of his pedigree, but he could just as easily have returned to his junior club, OHL Brampton, where he posted 37 goals and 98 points in 57 games last season. Going the college route will also prevent him from taking part in Flyers training camp in September, where he might have had an outside shot at making the team. That's now off the table. Advertisement But the Flyers are seemingly on board with Martone's decision. They were kept in the loop throughout the decision-making process, although general manager Daniel Briere indicated that they were also careful not to interfere too much, either. 'It was Porter and his family and his agent making the decision,' Briere told The Athletic on Tuesday. 'The cool part is we were involved in the process. They included us. We had long discussions. It's not like we told him one way or the other. We shared kind of the positives and the negatives of each side. They made the decision. So we told him we'd be very supportive of whatever the decision would be. It's not like there's a wrong or right answer here.' Said Armstrong: 'It was up to him and his family and his agent on the decision that he made, and we supported whatever he wanted to do.' Armstrong also pointed out what is thought by many to be the biggest benefit of playing in college: going against players who are older and more physically developed than those still in the Canadian junior ranks, while allowing plenty of time for off-ice work in the middle of the week as games are almost exclusively on weekends. 'I think from a strength standpoint, you get more time in the gym,' Armstrong said. 'You don't play as many games, and when you do play those games, he's not playing against 16 and 17-year-olds; he's going to play against 20-, 21-, 22-(year-olds) that are more mature. 'I felt it was a very mature decision for Porter to look at his career in the big picture, and not with this small lens (and say) this is going to help me five years from now. So I'm really excited about that, about his mindset that he had.' From a Flyers standpoint, though, Briere admitted that he's slightly disappointed that Martone, 18, won't be immediately experiencing his first NHL training camp. Depending on whether Tyson Foerster is healthy enough to start the season after developing an infection in his arm — the Flyers are still hopeful Foerster will be OK, but remain uncertain whether that will be the case — the door might have been open for Martone to stake his claim as a top-nine winger on opening night. Advertisement At the same time, Briere echoed Armstrong in suggesting that Martone attending Michigan State could potentially further his development. 'Going that direction and taking a year, a step up going from playing against 16-to-19 year olds, and now facing 19-to-24 year olds, it's going to be a little tougher for him,' Briere said. 'Guys that are a little bit more developed … it's kind of a stepping stone. We feel it could be the right decision, as well.' And, no, Briere isn't at all concerned about a repeat of the situation the Flyers found themselves in with Cutter Gauthier, when the Boston College product who was the fifth-overall pick of the Flyers in 2022 spurned the organization, forcing a trade. 'There's no worries about that,' Briere said. 'The biggest difference is the communication between our camp and (Martone's) camp, which wasn't there in the previous experience (with Gauthier).' That communication with Martone will remain consistent, according to Briere. That's something that Armstrong spearheads, with his player development staff that also includes Patrick Sharp, John LeClair, Sam Morin and Chris Stewart. Martone can expect a text message every Monday, according to Armstrong, who makes a point to do that with all of the organization's prospects on the first day of every week throughout the season. 'Riley has a big say in that. He's going to spend a lot of time — him and his staff and the rest of his group, they're all going to take turns,' Briere said. 'There's constant communication with all parties involved.' Briere continued: 'The important part for us, and we told (Martone), is we care about what Porter Martone is going to be in three, five, seven years from now. That's the most important part.'
Yahoo
22-07-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Michigan-Based Universities Dominating Junior Hockey Transfers
High-end draft picks Porter Martone, Malcolm Spence join growing list of junior talent joining Michigan-based universities. The junior hockey landscape has been completely flipped on it's head as of late as the Canadian Hockey League, Comprised of leagues from Ontario, Quebec and Western Canada have changed their rules as naming their players professionals and not allowing them to attend NCAA schools. This was changed this past August and players are taking advantage. Universities all over are tripping over themselves trying to land the top junior talent in the sport and lure them to their school. These teams have far better facilities, money-making opportunities with Name, Image and Likeness Deals as well as bigger and more mature talent than the CHL. The biggest draw for the NCAA is the American college experience that many players would be interested in experiencing rather than staying with a billet family in rural Canada. The biggest story out of the shifting junior hockey world was 2026 top NHL prospect Gavin McKenna leaving the WHL and committing to joining Penn State. Besides losing out on McKenna, Michigan-based universities are dominating this process. The University of Michigan and Michigan State have lead the way in terms of new transfers with top talents like Malcolm Spence and Jack Ivankovic joining the Wolverines while top draft picks Porter Martone and Cayden Lindstrom both agreed to play for the Spartans. The NCAA National Ice Hockey Championship was just won by Western Michigan, who has become a mainstay in the picture for a national title. The recent adds by the other Michigan-based schools will certainly close the gap and make NCAA hockey far more competitive than ever before especially in the state of Michigan. Bookmark The Hockey News Detroit Red Wings team site to stay connected to the latest news, game-day coverage, and player features. Spence was drafted 43rd overall in the second round during this year's draft and is coming off three stellar seasons with the Erie Otters. The Mississauga native put up 177 points through 195 games and will be a instant sparkplug for the Wolverines offence. They'll also get a reliable backstop with Ivankovic, who was drafted with the 58th overall pick in the second round by the Nashville Predators. After two season with the Mississauga/Brampton Steelheads, the 18-year-old posted a 39-17-9 record with a 2.93 goals against average and a .903 save percentage. He played with Team Canada on several occasions and will be an instant difference maker for Michigan. State got the higher end names however with Martone, who was projected to go as high as second overall in this year's draft but was ultimately selected sixth overall by the Philadelphia Flyers. Many expected his move to be to Penn State as they are also making splash adds but the 98-point producer last season instead chose the Spartans. Martone's 191 points through 149 games with the Steelheads make him a blockbuster add. The Spartans didn't stop their as they also added the fourth overall pick in last year's draft with Lindstrom. The BC native will be joining Martone after recording 88 points, including 46 goals and 42 assists, through 102 games with the Medicine Hat Tigers. Lindstrom was sidelined for all of last season with an injury but returned for the playoffs and averaged a point-per-game through four playoff games. Both schools made adds that could immediately make them national title contenders and more junior players are transferring in and out all the time. We could still see more players opt to committing with Michigan schools and could make the state a future force to be reckoned with in the collegiate hockey scene. Red Wings' Net Gets Crowded: Gibson Joins Fold as Cossa, Augustine Eye NHL Jobs Red Wings prospects Sebastian Cossa and Trey Augustine both could challenge for Detroit's backup job in the 2026-27 season. Never miss a story by adding us to your Google News favorites!
