Jett Luchanko recently finished his third season with the Guelph Storm in the OHL. Despite Luchanko being one of his team's top performers, Guelph finished with the second-worst record in the league and obviously did not make the playoffs. But it's unlikely that Luchanko is done playing hockey until the fall.
Before we get to that, Luchanko did what he could on a Storm team that had an abysmal season. They finished 21-38-5-4 and continue to rebuild. Surprisingly, they decided not to give Luchanko a chance to win a championship with another team. There had been rumors that he could be sent to the London Knights, teaming up with fellow prospects Denver Barkey and Oliver Bonk.
That did not happen as Luchanko's point totals suffered, especially after the trade deadline. Only three players finished with at least 20 goals for the Storm. Luchanko finished with 21, good for second on the team and a slight step up from last season. He wasn't able to top the 74 points he posted last season, finishing with 56. But again, that had to do with his lack of help more than anything he did.
He appeared in five games for Canada at the World Juniors, though some believe he was not put in the best position to succeed at the tournament. With all that said, what will the Flyers do with him next? More importantly, what should they do?
Luchanko has already played four games this season and could only play five more before the first year of his contract is burned. Philadelphia has 10 games left in the season. It makes no sense to burn the year in games that mean absolutely nothing.
Many fans have been clamoring for Luchanko to return to the NHL. The Flyers are stuck in a 1-9-1 stretch after allowing seven goals to a lowly Blackhawks team. People are looking for any reason to continue watching. But that is the problem. The reason Luchanko was sent to the OHL in the first place was because the team did not want him playing in this kind of mess.
So what's different now than it was at the beginning of the season? What can Luchanko learn by playing with a team that is arguably worse than they were at the beginning of the season? Sure, the Flyers could see what Luchanko learned from his four-game stint and see how he's developed since then.
"In the mess we're in right now at the start of a year, I'm not looking for an 18-year-old to try to get us out of it," Tortorella said during training camp.
They shouldn't be looking for him to get them out of anything now either. The Flyers are poised to pick in the top five of the draft this season. Right now, they sit with the fifth-worst record in the league. They could realistically drop to third worst by the end of the year. They won't be able to catch the Sharks or Blackhawks to have an even better shot at the top pick.
If the Flyers want to put Luchanko in a better situation, they will have him play with the Phantoms for the rest of the year as they are working on a playoff push. Since Luchanko is not allowed to play in the AHL next season, now would be a good time to get his feet wet and keep him developing in a scenario where there is still plenty to play for.
The Phantoms have nine games remaining in the regular season and their magic number to clinch a spot in the Calder Cup Playoffs for the third straight season sits at 11. That includes any games the Phantoms win and the Hartford Wolf Pack lose. So Luchanko would be playing in games that matter and it would still be a good test to see where he's at.
A lesser reason for keeping him in the AHL is that the Flyers only have one post-deadline recall remaining. They burned three of them when they recalled Olle Lycksell, Rodrigo Abols, and Emil Andrae following the trade deadline. The three were sent down as a paper move to keep them eligible for the AHL playoffs.
Teams are allowed as many emergency recalls which can be used when they fall under the proper amount of skaters. That means 12 forwards, six defensemen, and two goaltenders. Right now, the Flyers have that exact amount of forwards and defensemen with Garnet Hathaway and Rasmus Ristolainen sidelined. One more injury and they could call up whomever they want without penalty.
If the Flyers use their last recall on Luchanko, that means they won't get a look at Nikita Grebenkin unless there are any injuries. Grebenkin has looked good in his first few games with the Phantoms, scoring two goals. Now that's not the main reason to not give Luchanko a chance. But that will potentially be a factor.
Even if the Phantoms don't end up making a big postseason run, Luchanko will continue to get a good idea of what it takes at the next level. It's NHL or OHL for him next season so there's nothing to lose by giving him the chance to play in Lehigh Valley. He should have a much bigger role with the Phantoms than he would with the Flyers.
If the Flyers want to do what they think is best for Luchanko, they should not bring him up to Philadelphia to end the season.