Many people were taken by surprise when the Flyers traded back from the 12th pick to the 13th and selected Jett Luchanko. Now that the dust has more than settled, people have gotten on board with the pick.
Luchanko was a late riser in the draft, a common theme between a few of the Flyers' selections back in June. After his selection, Danny Briere explained a bit of their process in drafting Luchanko and some of the things they liked about his game. With other players like Cole Eiserman, Konsta Helenius, and Zeev Buium still on the board, the decision warranted questions.
"The way he plays, the way he works, he's a complete player first of all," Briere said after Luchanko's selection. "Very young still, played on an OHL team, and what he did and how he got better and better as the season went on, we feel that, yes, he's a center, absolutely, and we feel he's just starting to tap his potential."
Briere did say that the Flyers would continue to draft based on the best player available when their pick came around. But they could lean toward a center if there weren't many differences between the two players they were looking at. Turns out, it was close between Luchanko and Buium at the time.
"Luchanko was a player that our entire staff liked. The two players were very close. But for us, with equal value, we preferred the center, given our organization chart for the future."
Jett Luchanko draws comparison to Nick Suzuki
Briere didn't stop there with the compliments for Luchanko. Talking to Canadian outlet La Presse recently, he compared Luchanko to Canadiens' captain Nick Suzuki.
""He reminds me a lot of Nick Suzuki. He's not the biggest, but he's very effective in all facets of the game. If he becomes half of Suzuki, we'll be happy.""
Not a bad comparison to be given. Suzuki is entering his sixth season in the NHL since being drafted 13th overall in 2017. Before stepping on NHL ice, he was traded from Vegas to Montreal where he has shined. He has gotten better every season, increasing his goal total every year that he has played. His point totals have increased in the last four years as well.
Suzuki was named the Canadiens captain in 2022, becoming the youngest player to hold that honor in franchise history. So if Luchanko can become even half the player that Suzuki is, the Flyers would've found themselves a gem of a player. Not surprisingly, Luchanko also mentioned Suzuki as someone that he modeled his game after.
"“He’s someone I’ve seen a lot around and I watched him closely. I grew up watching him play, even here in London. He’s someone I idolize quite a bit.”"
The two both grew up in London, Ontario, and laced up for the Guelph Storm. But the seven-year age gap between them meant they never skated together. And Suzuki only spent half a season with Guelph after a trade from the Owen Sound Attack. Even so, Suzuki would've been a player that Luchanko was watching when he was younger.
Both have similar builds and use their speed as a focal point of their games. Suzuki had a much better year leading to his draft, but Luchanko still broke through in a big way to put his name on the radar. And his role will only get bigger when he returns to Guelph for his third season.
That is after he takes part in the Flyers' rookie and training camp in a few weeks. The Flyers do play the Canadiens during the preseason so there's a chance Suzuki and Luchanko could face each other.