Flyers: Assessing the Flyers picks in the 2020 NHL Draft

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The Philadelphia Flyers certainly made some interesting picks in this year’s entry draft, let’s take a look and assess them pick-by-pick.

Drafts are always a mixed bag. The more research that occurs, the more opinions are generated about the draft’s strengths and weaknesses. Worse still, you can start to have favorites. The chances of a team taking a single favorite are slim, let alone the whole favorite lists. Needless I find myself tasting some bitterness when the Flyers don’t do what I want. This draft was no different.

Draft Management Grade: B
Considering where they picked, I think Chuck Fletcher and the boys did well. They sacrificed picks in a deck that was already a little short to get the players where they saw the value. That is what successful teams do. I do think they left a little money on the table with the first round by not trading down. But maybe they wanted to make sure that they got Foerster.

Scouting Grade: C
Unfortunately, I liked the later picks more than the early ones. I am almost exclusively in the “best player available” camp. That is Chuck Fletcher’s view as well (or so he says), and I think players were taken with better players on the board. I think this could be a difference of opinion in what is seen in a single-player, but after two drafts with Fletch, I am thinking it is a difference in philosophy on what makes a good NHL player.

Tyson Foerster | Round 1 | 23rd Overall

Grade: B

Tyson Foerster, Barrie Colts (Photo by Mike Stobe/Getty Images) /

The Flyers stayed put at 23 and selected Tyson Foerster, a scoring winger from the OHL. This pick should make a certain segment of the fan base, the portion that desperately wanted Cole Caufield.

Both players are insanely different, however.

Both players have world-class shots, and that is the tool that will punch their ticket to the NHL. Foerster’s one-timer is so good that it draws comparisons to Ovechkin’s. Foerster also seems to have underrated playmaking and puck battling skills. He also has NHL size and strength, the two knocks against Caufield.

But Foerster also has a fatal flaw, his skating ability. Where Caufield had no concerns regarding his skating, Foerster has many. This has been a trend with the Flyers’ picks under Fletcher, even Bobby Brink, last year’s second-round pick was dinged because of a “funky” skating style.

The question is: How bad is Foerster’s skating?

To be honest, I can’t tell. Remote scouting does not lend itself to gauging this. Either the player is in the frame or he isn’t. I did not see anything that made me think he was a massive skating liability, but I also saw nothing that made me think the scouts got it wrong.

In the end, I like the pick. In the absolute best case, we have Brett Hull. Many of the skating concerns surrounded Hull, but Foerster seems much more earnest and focused on improvement than Hull did at the same age. In the worst-case, he becomes a third liner and powerplay specialist. I think he will play over 200 games in the NHL. My guess is he becomes an effective middle six and power-play scorer at the NHL level.

Emil Andrae | 2nd Round | 54th Overall

Grade: D

The Flyers stayed with 54th pick overall and took Swedish defensemen Emil Andrae. On paper, Andrae dominated the J20 Swedish League (their top junior league) leading all defensemen in scoring. He is an undersized but mobile defender that can work the powerplay. But that can be misleading. The leading scorer in that league was his teammate winger Zion Nybeck, who went in the fourth round to Carolina. Further, the consensus best defender was William Wallinder. I would also put Helge Grans as a better defensive prospect.

To me, this pick continues a discouraging trend that the Fletcher team has shown when drafting defenders. Fletcher seems to have a penchant for drafting defensemen that are skilled but have real questions about how they handle defense in their own end.

They spent a first-round pick on Cam York, who was underwhelming in just about every aspect last season, particularly defensively. Where York appears destined to be a second pair puck mover with a questionable defense, Andrae will be lucky to reach that not so loft standard. Think of the trouble that Gostisbehere has in his own end, now Imagine it with Ghost only being half as smart as he is. That will be Andrae.

I hope I am wrong, but I do not see Andrae playing 200 games in the NHL. I think that he will progress in Sweden, and may get called over to the AHL in two or three years. I see a few camps and some spot duty for him in the future. With no dynamic offensive component, just an undersized puck-moving defenseman there will not be space for him with Myers, Provorov, Sanheim, Zamula and perhaps Cam York dressing each night.

Zayde Wisdom | 4th Round | 94th overall

Grade: A

Zayde Wisdom has a great story. For some, it is about systemic injustice, but for me, it is about perseverance. Wisdom grew up poor, in a single-parent home where keeping the lights on was a struggle. He also struggled with weight and fitness. These were obstacles that would have stopped many kids, they well may have stopped me when I was a kid. But Zayde kept going. He kept struggling and now he is an NHL draft pick. This sport I love has people playing at its highest level because they are determined because they never give up because they persevere because they are going to outwork everyone. I see this in Mr. Wisdom and this is why I think he will have a fine NHL career.

Philadelphia Flyers

Wisdom found a bit of scoring touch last season potting twenty-nine goals after getting only three the previous season. Many critics and scouts think his offensive increase was due to being paired with Shane Wright, a player who may go first overall in the 2021 draft. There may be some merit to that, but the scoring is not what excites me about Wisdom.

While Wisdom’s skills are still developing, he has a strong frame and build and uses that strength to dominate defenders in puck battles and in front of the net. Beyond his physicality is his mentality, he brings a dogged determination and energy to each shift. We are not talking Zac Rinaldo/Hanson brothers murder sprees, but a Doberman like dedication to chasing down the puck. He is going to be a constant force on the forecheck. He brings the same energy and focus to the backcheck. Players that retrieve the puck with abandon and feed their star teammates are so very important. Think of Raffl and Laughton, but I think Wisdom will be a better forechecker.

I think Wisdom will play over 200 games in the NHL, seeing time as a grinder that can move up and down the line up depending on where he is needed. I think his determination will get him time as a penalty killer and perhaps spot time as a net-front presence on the powerplay. He will be a great teammate on the ice.

I like that Fletcher moved up to get him and I am betting he will work his way into the NHL

Elliot Desnoyers | 5th Round | 135th Overall

Grade: B

Scouts say Desnoyers plays a pretty simple and straight forward game. There is not very much flash or pizazz in his game, but he does enough good things to be productive. That may be a nice way of saying that there is not much creativity in his skating or stickhandling.

Desnoyers does solid work in the corners, and on defense, he is also an excellent passer with a playmaking mentality. He is a solid two-way winger that supplies effort in all three zones.

He has the type of game that translates well to the bottom six of a team. I hope to see more from him this season because, at this point, I do not see him playing 200 games in the NHL. The foundation is there but it needs enhancement, and would not surprise me if he has a dominant draft +1 season.

In the late rounds, it is really tough to project young prospects. I think Desnoyers is a really solid player and has a solid foundation but not enough to make him a legitimate NHL prospect, not yet anyway. I would have looked to Daniel Ljungman, who Dallas took at pick 154, as a potential defensive center.

Connor McClennon | 6th Round | 178th Overall

Grade: B

Connor McClennon is a spark plug of a winger despite his short stature. He plays hard and excels along the walls. Unfortunately, in addition to being undersized, there are some concerns about his skating, in particular his top-end speed. McClennon has a decent shot but is not considered a scorer at this juncture. He is more of an opportunist, greasy goal type of scorer.

McClennon is a willing back checker and has a knack for pressuring players into turnovers, but his size does present some limitations to his game. His small frame and reach can cause problems in defensive coverage if his positioning is anything but perfect.

I don’t see McClennon making the NHL, thus not breaking the 200 game threshold. But he was one of the highest-rated players left on the board at that point and certainly worth the picks.

McClennon is a lottery ticket at this point, like most late-round picks. His mentality is great but will have to show dramatic improvement as a skater if he hopes to make the NHL. I would have looked at center Aatu Jamsen who the Kings took in the seventh round. Jamsen is big and can skate but has yet to be tested by great competition.

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