The balls literally did not bounce in the Flyers' favor last night, after a promising start where it looked like the Philadelphia Flyers could jump up from their fourth overall slot to the top pick. Instead, they fell to sixth. Needless to say, this was disappointing for Flyers fans.
This will be the fourth time the organization has picked sixth in its storied history. So far, they're batting .667. That must be a good sign, right?
In 1969, the Flyers drafted right winger Bob Currier of the CJHL's Cornwall Royals sixth overall. Currier played 201 AHL games (38 G, 22 A, 60 Pts) but never made it to the big club.
Given that the Flyers organization was still new to the NHL, it's fair to give them a pass on that pick, especially since they also picked Bobby Clarke, Dave Schultz, and Don Saleski that same year. So, it's safe to say the 1969 Amateur Draft was a big win for the Flyers. Still, it was not a great pick at 6.
Nearly a decade later, the Flyers had a second shot at picking sixth overall and did pretty well for themselves. Philadelphia chose defenseman Behn Wilson sixth and center Ken Linseman seventh with back-to-back picks. Both went on to have successful careers. Behn helped take the Flyers to the 1980 Stanley Cup Finals and was named an All-Star the next season.
The third time proved to be the real charm for the Flyers -- at least in terms of finding talent. Philadelphia used the sixth overall pick in the 1991 Entry Draft to select future Hall-of-Fame forward Peter Forsberg. The smooth-skating Foppa was traded to Quebec in the Eric Lindros deal and went on to win two Stanley Cups with the Colorado Avalanche before returning to Philadelphia.
As wonderful as it would have been to see Forsberg win a Stanley Cup in Philly, the Flyers organization hit it out of the park with the selection. Each of their sixth-overall picks proved to be better than the last. Could the 2025 sixth overall pick prove to be even better?
It will be years before that question can be answered. In the meantime, speculate can run rampant.
It seems unlikely the Flyers can top Forsberg with their 2025 sixth overall pick, but they may get an All-Star-caliber player at that spot. The team needs a true top-line center who can keep up with Matvei Michkov, and there should be a decent amount of options available.
Corey Pronman, noted prospect writer, has seven of his top 10 draft pick rankings assigned to centers. Depending on how things play out, Caleb Desnoyers, James Hagens, Anton Frondell, Jake O'Brien, Roger McQueen, and Brady Martin could be sitting there at six. It's unlikely that top-ranked center, Michael Misa, will fall that far, but stranger things have happened -- like Matvei Michkov falling to seventh two years ago.
When the NHL Entry Draft takes place on June 28, we’ll find out whether the Flyers’ batting average at No. 6 climbs to .750 or drops to .500.