Will Jett Luchanko Play with the Flyers This Year?

Jett Luchanko survived the first round of training camp cuts by the Flyers. In his first preseason game, he recorded two assists, took three shots on goal, and won five of eleven faceoff draws. He has played some with Matvei Mickhov and the pairing seems to be a good one. Is it possible that Jett Luchanko, the recently turned 18-year-old 2024 first-round pick by the Flyers could make the big team? Will he play in Philadelphia?

The short answer is probably not. However, the long-term answer is possible. There are a few wrinkles to all of this and it will be interesting to see how it plays out.

To start, Luchanko has been impressing everyone during camp. He's been playing hard. While he knows he is most likely going back to the Guelph Storm in the OHL, he is doing everything he can to show he belongs here. Since camp has started, Luchanko has eagerly been showcasing a set of skills that show why he was selected in the first round by the Flyers this summer. He may be 18 and raw, but he has been impressing the right people.

One of those people has been Flyers head coach John Tortorella. He recently talked about Luchanko's continued presence in camp.

He's in elite condition, I mean, you can see that, With all the skating we've done, he just keeps going. He's a strong kid, bigger than I thought he was when you get up close with him. He has just handled himself really well.

Those are really good comments from a guy who has been around the game for a long time.

Is it possible Jett Luchanko breaks camp with the Flyers?

For the most part, the Flyers roster is pretty much set, barring an injury during camp. Outside of Michkov, most of the guys in camp are veterans who have been around. Because of their contracts, they are pretty much secure (barring a trade). So if he isn't going to make the team, why is Luchanko still here?

First of all, he is expected to be the team's center of the future. Daniel Briere and Tortorella want to see what the team has invested in, More importantly, because of his contract with the Guelph Storm, he will be going back to the junior league team.

But, and this is a very BIG BUT, there are agreements between the OHL and NHL regarding how junior league players can be used if they are 18 or 19 years old. Luchanko could appear with the Flyers for a total of nine games and not use up their first year of eligibility on their entry-level deal.

With that in mind, it is a long shot for Luchanko to make the Flyers. As of this moment, it's been fun to watch him work with the team at camp. It is appearing, more and more, that Briere may have made a big steal with this draft pick.