Philadelphia Flyers: 5 Worst Draft Picks of the Last Decade

The Philadelphia Flyers have made the playoffs just twice since 2016, and their poor drafting has greatly limited their success.

The Philadelphia Flyers have the seventh overall pick in the 2023 NHL Draft as well as the 22nd, but if recent history says anything, it’s that the Flyers are not guaranteed to draft an impact player. As the Flyers have fully committed to a rebuild, it is crucial that Daniel Briere and the rest of the Flyers front office get their top draft picks right this year. Briere, a first-time general manager, has wasted no time clearing house in his inaugural offseason. Ivan Provorov was the first man out the door, and embattled veterans Kevin Hayes and Tony DeAngelo don’t seem to be too far behind him. It remains to be seen whether or not some of the others, like Travis Sanheim and Carter Hart, depart the City of Brotherly Love.

As it turns out, Nolan Patrick ended up winning a Stanley Cup before the Philadelphia Flyers did. Patrick was supposed to be an integral part of the Flyers’ rebuild, but chronic migraines and head injuries squashed any hope he might have had of becoming star in the NHL. Drafted second overall by the Flyers in the 2017 NHL Draft, Patrick played in 197 games for the Flyers before heading to the Vegas Golden Knights by way of the Nashville Predators. Patrick had two solid 30-point seasons as a 19 and 20 year old in 2017-18 and 2018-19, but bottomed out to a nine-point 2019-20 season as he battled with his migraine condition and other injuries. Patrick played just 25 games with the Golden Knights in the 2021-22 season, and missed the entirety of the 2022-23 season.

Philadelphia Flyers fans might be familiar with the story that exiled general manager Chuck Fletcher ignored the advice of his scouts and chose Nolan Patrick over Cale Makar. While the decision was fairly reasonable, Patrick’s injury concerns were a major red flag even before his time in the NHL, and was one of the deciding factors in the New Jersey Devils drafting Nico Hischier first overall. Makar, of course, has already won a Stanley Cup, a Norris Trophy, and a Conn Smythe Trophy whilst having more points than games played as a defenseman. Dallas Stars defenseman Miro Heiskanen and Vancouver Canucks and Montreal Canadiens centers Elias Pettersson and Nick Suzuki have all developed into All-Star caliber NHL players and were drafted after Patrick.

Nolan Patrick might be the biggest ‘what-if’ in all of the recent NHL drafts; the 6’2″ center was a star talent who often showed signs of becoming a great two-way player. Patrick was always a net-positive possession player, had the size and skill to score from anywhere, was a good faceoff taker, and had the hockey IQ to regularly produce takeaways for his team. Patrick is still young, though, and will turn 25 in September. If he gets healthy to the point of being able to return to the ice, it’s unclear whether or not Patrick will get a chance to make an NHL team or not. Patrick’s condition does not appear to have had any updates since it was announced in September that he would miss the season. Patrick is a restricted free agent this summer and is arbitration-eligible, but it’s unclear whether or not the Vegas Golden Knights have plans to bring him back in any capacity. If Patrick wants to resume his playing career, it may have to be on an AHL tryout or overseas.

The Philadelphia Flyers’ blueline has been a carousel for years, and their drafting has had a lot to do with that. Back in 2013, the Flyers drafted Sam Morin at 11th overall. Morin wouldn’t make his NHL debut until the 2016-17 season, and bounced around between the Lehigh Valley Phantoms and the Flyers every year after that. Morin tore his same ACL in 2018 and 2019, which reportedly caused permanent and irreversible damage to his knee, effectively ending his playing career. Due to the damage, Morin was forced to try to make the Flyers as an enforcer rather than a defenseman in the 2020-21 season thanks to his reduced mobility. Morin played only 27 games in total that season, which would also be his last. As a result, Morin played 54 total games from the 2016-17 season to the end of his career, including just 29 at the NHL level. In the NHL, Morin posted just one goal and no assists.

The 2013 Draft wasn’t excellent by any means, but the Philadelphia Flyers could have drafted almost any other defenseman that was chosen in the first round. Josh Morrissey, Ryan Pulock, Nikita Zadorov, and Shea Theodore all developed into very good NHL defensemen. Morrissey was named an NHL All-Star for the first time in 2023, while Shea Theodore won the Stanley Cup with the Vegas Golden Knights. Pulock and Zadorov have both been steady top-four defenders for their teams as well. Mirco Mueller was also drafted in 2013, but neither the New Jersey Devils nor the San Jose Sharks could develop him into an everyday NHLer. Still, Mueller managed to play in 185 NHL games.

What was supposed to be a strength for the Philadelphia Flyers became a weakness, and still is to this day. The Flyers drafted Ivan Provorov seventh overall in 2015, and Provorov became the third left-shot Flyers defenseman to be drafted in the first round in as many years, succeeding Sam Morin (2013) and Travis Sanheim (2014). With Morin injured and in juniors, and Sanheim not becoming a regular until 2018, Provorov was forced to be the Flyers’ number one defenseman since his age 20 season in 2016-17. Provorov was excellent in 2017-18, but proceeded to get worse either offensively, defensively, or both in every season thereafter. Provorov always showed signs of becoming a star, but it never happened because he never had the opportunity to develop. The 2022-23 season was proof enough for Daniel Briere that Provorov could not be the number one guy in Philly anymore, and so he was shipped off to the Columbus Blue Jackets to be their number two behind Zach Werenski.

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Speaking of Zach Werenski, the former University of Michigan blueliner was taken directly after Provorov and developed into one of the best two-way defenseman in the NHL, having been named an All-Star in 2018 and 2022. If the Flyers were hellbent on adding yet another defenseman, Werenski was certainly the better choice. If they went in a different direction, Timo Meier and Mikko Rantanen are two world class forwards that were taken after Werenski. For more context, consider that Provorov is one of three players taken in the top-10 of the 2015 NHL Draft that have not been an NHL All-Star yet. The other two are Dylan Strome and Pavel Zacha.

Ivan Provorov can still return to form and become a useful NHLer again; he’s still young at 26, and will be 27 after the new year. He’s got a lot of mileage on his legs already, but a change of scenery with a more talented Blue Jackets team and a reduced role could help Provorov get back to doing what he does best. In Philly, his distractions combined with declining play made him an obvious choice for Daniel Briere to cut bait.

Chosen in the back end of the first round of the 2016 NHL Draft, only some of the most dedicated Philadelphia Flyers fans have heard of or remember German Rubtsov. Rubtsov left the Flyers organization having only played four games, and did not score or assist in those four games. Rubtsov also wasn’t much better in the AHL, scoring just 30 points in 98 games with Lehigh Valley and the Charlotte Checkers. Rubtsov ended up in Charlotte by way of the Flyers trading for Owen Tippett; he was packaged with Claude Giroux and Connor Bunnaman to the Florida Panthers. A few months later, Rubtsov was not tendered a qualifying offer by the Panthers and subsequently returned home to Russia, where he is currently playing in their second division.

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Only one player chosen in the first round of the 2016 NHL Draft has appeared in fewer games than German Rubtsov: Lucas Johansen of the Washington Capitals. Johansen is the younger brother of newly-minted Colorado Avalanche Ryan Johansen. Lucas was drafted with pick 28, and had an assist in his NHL debut that came in 2021-22. Johansen played in two games for the Capitals this season, and recently won the Calder Cup with the Hershey Bears. At the very least, he is still contributing to the organization that drafted him in some capacity.

In drafting German Rubtsov, the Philadelphia Flyers passed on other centers, such as Tage Thompson, Trent Frederic, and Sam Steel. Thompson is obviously the big fish, but Frederic and Steel have become everyday NHLers too. Frederic in particular could develop into a great role player for a team that needs it. Rubtsov on the other hand is on his last legs in professional hockey.