Flyers will have the seventh pick in the 2023 NHL Draft
The ping pong balls have spoken. And that means that the Flyers will have the seventh pick in the 2023 NHL Entry Draft.
While they will not have the pleasure of drafting Connor Bedard, there are other top players that will be available to them. Some other players that will go in the top half of the draft may include Adam Fantilli, Matvei Michkov, Leo Carlsson, William Smith, and Oliver Moore.
There’s no guarantee on which players will be available to the Flyers once they pick, but they are certain to get a top-end talent nonetheless.
The last time the Flyers picked seventh, they drafted Ivan Provorov in 2015.
Flyers earn seventh pick in the 2023 NHL Draft
While the Flyers did not win the lottery, here is how the top 16 will look come draft time. There wasn’t much chaos as most teams remained in the spot they finished the regular season in.
- Chicago Blackhawks
- Anaheim Ducks
- Columbus Blue Jackets
- San Jose Sharks
- Montreal Canadiens
- Arizona Coyotes
- Philadelphia Flyers
- Washington Capitals
- Detroit Red Wings
- St. Louis Blues
- Vancouver Canucks
- Arizona Coyotes (via the Ottawa Senators)
- Buffalo Sabres
- Pittsburgh Penguins
- Nashville Predators
- Calgary Flames
It’s the first time the Blackhawks will be drafting first since taking Patrick Kane in 2007. Flyers fans remember that well as they had the second overall pick and ended up with James van Riemsdyk.
Some players that have been drafted seventh overall include Quinn Hughes, Matt Dumba, Clayton Keller, Jeff Skinner, and Nazem Kadri. Those are some pretty solid NHLers. So while the Flyers won’t be getting the likely generational talent in Connor Bedard, they are still likely to get someone who can contribute at the NHL level.
There are plenty of rankings highlighting the talent that will be available in the upcoming draft. These are just a few names that are looked at as the seventh best.
- Nate Danielson, C, Brandon Wheat Kings
- David Reinbacher, D, EHC Kloten
- Zach Benson, LW, Winnipeg Ice
- Ryan Leonard, RW, USNTDP
As you can see, there is no true consensus on which players could go seventh as there can be plenty of movement after the first few picks. We saw that last year when Shane Wright dropped to the Seattle Kraken with the fourth pick after he was expected to be the top pick.
Anything can happen between now and the draft. But there was no chaos on draft lottery night for the Flyers, or the rest of the NHL.