Boston University defenseman Sascha Boumedienne (right) has the size and skill the Flyers need at the left defense position. (Photo: Connor Hamilton, Imagn Images) [https://deweb-519a7.b-cdn.net/post-images/26727e3c-3620-4cf0-b015-aee4b769ec7d.jpeg] Boston University defenseman Sascha Boumedienne (right) has the size and skill the Flyers need at the left defense position. (Photo: Connor Hamilton, Imagn Images) With three picks in the first round of the 2025 NHL Draft, the Philadelphia Flyers [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/philadelphia-flyers] have all the ammo needed to address multiple important organizational needs. Chief among those needs is finding a future No. 1 center, which largely depends on if the draft lottery shakes out favorably for the Flyers. At this stage of the process, it is apparent that Michael Misa and James Hagens are the two best centers in the draft, though Misa is the clear-cut favorite of the two amongst many draftniks. With two months to go until the 2025 draft, EliteProspects has Misa listed as their highest-ranked forward [https://www.eliteprospects.com/draft-center/eliteprospects.com], with Hagens placing fourth overall on the board as the No. 3 forward. Erie Otters defenseman Matthew Schaefer, for all intents and purposes, is the most widely-accepted No. 1 player overall heading into June. As we broke down in our end-of-season NHL draft odds [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/philadelphia-flyers/latest-news/philadelphia-flyers-steal-top-draft-pick-now-what] review, the Flyers, who had the fourth-worst record in the NHL this season, have a higher chance of sliding back to the fifth pick than anything else. For this exercise, I’ll assume the Flyers indeed drop down one pick in the lottery, where they still land a center they hope can develop into a future star. With the fifth overall pick in the 2025 NHL Draft, the Philadelphia Flyers select… Anton Frondell, C, Djurgardens IF (HockeyAllsvenskan) Assuming Misa, Hagens, Porter Martone, and Schaefer are all off the board, the Flyers’ best options at center are Anton Frondell, Roger McQueen, and Caleb Desnoyers. Frondell’s draft stock plummeted at the start of the year due to a slew of injuries and a generally slow start, but virtually erased all that damage with a dynamite second half. Overall, Frondell finished with 11 goals, 14 assists, and 25 points in 29 games with Djurgårdens IF in the HockeyAllsvenskan, Sweden’s second tier of pro hockey. In 15 postseason games so far, Frondell has picked up three goals, four assists, and seven points as Djurgardens fights for promotion to the SHL. In 16 rankings compiled by EliteProspects [https://www.eliteprospects.com/player/689906/anton-frondell], Frondell’s average draft ranking comes out to 6.9, with only EliteProspects (12th) and Draft Prospects Hockey (18th) ranking him outside of the top 10 at this point in time. The biggest knock on Frondell heading into the 2025 draft is his transition game, which is also how the Flyers create the majority of their offense. His ability to create, both with his legs and with his imagination, are question marks, but there is no doubt that Frondell can become an NHLer. The Flyers will love that Frondell already has a strong understanding of how to play in tight spaces, win pucks, and chase them down. On paper, the Swede is a great fit for generating in-zone offense when playing with someone like Matvei Michkov [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/philadelphia-flyers/players/matvei-michkov-says-he-was-very-upset-when-flyers-fired-john-tortorella], for example, but as mentioned above, my primary concern is if Frondell becomes dead weight without the puck on his stick in a shooting position. He has a borderline elite shot and can and will crash and bang, but the Flyers will have to consider whether Frondell can add more wrinkles to his game than this. With McQueen’s injury history and Desnoyers’ lack of a particular elite trait that stands out above the rest, the Flyers go for the highest-upside bet in Frondell at the center position. With the 28th overall pick (EDM) in the 2025 NHL Draft, the Philadelphia Flyers select… Sascha Boumedienne, D, Boston University (NCAA) Sascha Boumedienne may not be as highly regarded as he was at the start of the season, but the Swedish blueliner has shown signs of life and improvement throughout the year to justify a potential first-round draft slot. At 6-foot-2, Boumedienne has the prototypical size for a defenseman and has plenty of tools to match, though he’s far from a finished product. He’s physical, likes to get involved in attack, defends very well in space, and has no problem transporting the puck up ice. As a January birthday, at the age of 18, the left-shot defender is one of the older players in the class, which cuts down the developmental runway some. Plus, with just three goals and 13 points in the NCAA [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/philadelphia-flyers/latest-news/flyers-will-face-tough-competition-for-top-ncaa-coach] this season, Boumedienne is unlikely to become a major point producer at the next level. The Flyers will be happy to take a chance on the imposing Boumedienne towards the end of the first round, though, giving themselves a B-tier defense prospect with multiple translatable pro attributes. If all goes well, maybe Boumedienne becomes something like a modern day Adam Larsson: a defenseman who can occasionally chip in offensively, block shots, make big hits, kill plays, and move the puck efficiently for his team. With the 32nd overall pick in the 2025 NHL Draft, the Philadelphia Flyers select… Ivan Ryabkin, C, Muskegon Lumberjacks (USHL) The Flyers find themselves fortunate to land Ivan Rybakin, a potential top 10 pick only months ago, at the bottom of the first round. As talented as he is, Ryabkin played at four different levels of hockey for four different teams in the 2024-25 season. The 17-year-old Russian played two KHL games for Dynamo Moskva, recording zero points. In eight VHL games with Dynamo St. Petersburg, Ryabkin had just two assists. Ryabkin scored 12 points in 15 MHL games with MHK Dynamo Moskva, but scored just one goal and wasn’t really blowing the doors off. However, Ryabkin made a shock move to the United States, debuting for the USHL’s Muskegon Lumberjacks against the U.S. National Team Development Program on Jan. 3 and recording two assists out the gate. In 27 regular season games with the Lumberjacks, Ryabkin quickly ripped off 19 goals and 30 points, and in five playoff games so far, has three goals and five points. It should be noted that, in his 32 total USHL games, Ryabkin has already racked up 92 penalty minutes in addition to his scoring prowess. Ryabkin is finally showing flashes of his first-round talent and adding an agitating, power forward element to it to match. Consistency and mobility still have a long way to go, but the talent is there. Imagine a Russian trio of Michkov, Nikita Grebenkin [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/philadelphia-flyers/players/nikita-grebenkin-continuing-torrid-start-to-life-in-flyers-organization], and Ryabkin getting under opponents’ skin and making ridiculous passes at the peaks of their powers.
