In 2023, the Philadelphia Flyers, with Daniel Briere making his first selections as general manager, had two first-round picks to play with. With the very first pick, Briere chose Matvei Michov seventh overall. It was a pick that some questioned because there was fear he might not appear in the NHL soon, due to his KHL contract. Turns out, it wasn't a big deal. Instead, it was hailed as a bold pick that could pay off in years to come.
The second pick, more accurately the 22nd pick, became Oliver Bonk. It was a pick that made a bunch of fans ponder the decisions made by the new GM. After all, the Russian forward was predicted not to make an NHL appearance for like five years. Bonk...some questioned if it was too high a selection. Besides, Gabe Perreault and a bunch of other players who people liked were still there.
The knock on Bonk was that he was probably more of a second-rounder than a first-rounder. Since the Flyers didn't have a second-round pick that year, due to the Rasmus Ristolainen trade, the Flyers "reached" for Bonk. Here we are, two years later, and 'reached' is not a word we'd use now.
Bonk's junior level success has seen his stock rise
Bonk, in short, tore it up in the OHL. In his first full season with the London Knights, he scored 10 goals with 30 assists. The following season, he scored 24 goals with 43 assists. Bonk, along with fellow Flyers' prospect Denver Barkey, led the Knights to two straight OHL championships.
Bonk is a scoring juggernaut, the likes of which the Flyers haven't had in a long time. He is 20 years old, 6'2", and only 175 lbs. Currently, he is expected to start with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms.
However, he could join the Flyers if he has a good camp. With the Risotalinen out for the foreseeable future, there is a chance he could crack the roster. If he is good enough, he could stay.
Let's say that Ristolainen is hurt for a while and that Bonk does make the team. Here is what the Flyers' defense could look like
Cam York | Travis Sanheim |
Jamie Drysdale | Nick Seeler |
Oliver Bonk | Noah Juulsen/Dennis Gilbert/Emil Andrae/Egor Zamula |
In this scenario, you pair a more defensive-minded player (Seeler) with a more offensive-minded guy. Think of when Chris Therien was paired up with Eric Desjardins or Chris Pronger with Kimmo Timonen.
This could give the Flyers three solid defenders who can score and jump-start transitional play. That is potentially very dangerous for any opposing teams. Add that to all of the young forwards, like Michkov, who could translate those plays into goals. When you consider these players are also under 25, that is a defensive squad that could be around for a very long time.
Again, all of this is pure speculation. First, we have to see how he performs at camp. Personally, I think he may bring in a lot more excitement than any prospect in the pool, outside of Porter Martone. I'd be willing to lay money down now that Bonk gets an extended look. I'd also be willing to bet that once he arrives, he's not going away.