Weeks have passed since the NHL draft, development camps across the league have wrapped up and there are still a few months to go until preseason hockey is underway.
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But there’s still plenty happening to keep give fans their hockey fill, including Scott Wheeler of The Athletic releasing his list of Top 100 drafted NHL prospects on Tuesday morning.
The list of 100 prospects is made up of players who fall into two qualifications: skaters under age 23 and/or skaters not yet fully established with their clubs. The latter requirement is left up to Wheeler’s discernment. The players are then ranked from 1 to 100, and sorted into six tiers.
The ranking includes 24 players from this year’s draft and 25 from last year’s, with the other 51 ranging from the 2022 to 2024 drafts.
But despite the 38 picks the Flyers had across those five drafts, Philly had just two players make this list with Porter Martone coming in third on this list as a top-tier prospect and David Jiříček just inching his way onto the list at 97 as a sixth-tier prospect.
Alex Bump, Jett Luchanko, Jack Nesbitt, and Oliver Bonk were each part of the final cuts, and were considered by Wheeler to be tier six prospects.
Martone played just 19 games with the Flyers last season, nine in the regular season and 10 in the playoffs, making the 19-year-old eligible for the list on both qualifications. During the regular season, he had 10 points in his nine games, four goals and six assists, and his 14 shots on goal were the most by a rookie in his first two games in the league.
During the playoffs he became the first teenager in league history to score a game-winning goal in each of his first two career playoff games. He added three assists to those two goals to finish with five points in the playoffs.
With just the Nos. 1 and 2 overall picks in the 2026 draft, Penn State product Gavin McKenna (Toronto Maple Leafs) and Ivar Stenberg (San Jose Sharks) ranking ahead of him, the 6-foot-3 right winger is described by Wheeler as a “modern powered forward who blends size with skill, poise, physicality and scoring ability.” Wheeler says he debated ranking him No. 2.
Wheeler continued on to mention Martone’s build, battle for the puck and puck handling skills, and willingness to drop the gloves, among other attributes, but also noted that there are instances where he falls to poor play selection, turnovers, bad penalties, and other issues. His biggest note was about Martone’s skating which he said “can kick out from the knees” and will need to improve so the rest of his game can improve, but again noted the teenager’s many attributes.
“He’s going to score goals, make plays and be able to impose himself in the NHL when he really comes into his own,” Wheeler said. “He has the talent to become a high-end point-producing winger. The skill and hockey sense are real, and the consistency of his effort level and toughness have developed over time, too. He’s one of the top forward prospects in the game.”
Michael Misa of the Sharks finished out the top four, making Misa the second San Jose player in the top tier and one of six Sharks to make the list.
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The Detroit Red Wings and the Vancouver Canucks also had six prospects each. The Blackhawks had the most appearances in the top 100 with eight prospects, followed by the Calgary Flames and the Nashville Predators who had seven each.
Helping close out the list was Jiříček who was drafted sixth overall by the Columbus Blue Jackets in 2022. One of 30 defensemen in the ranking, the 22-year-old was acquired by the Flyers at this season’s trade deadline in exchange for Bobby Brink.
The 6-4 blueliner played one game with the Flyers during the regular season before being sent down to the Lehigh Valley Phantoms. He was later recalled with Bonk to join the Flyers’ playoff roster but did not see any ice time.
Wheeler said Jiříček has a number of desirable attributes including his point shot, commanding presence, and strong frame, but said he is stilted in his backwards skating and pivots, which causes him to struggle to keep up in a fast-paced game.
Jiříček’s offensive contributions, such as being a puck transporter and a puck handler or distributor, were also commended by Wheeler, but he noted that while Jiříček has tools one would look for in a top defenseman, he also lacks some of the most important tools including play reading ability.
“Because his decision-making and footwork don’t seem to be improving enough, he no longer projects as a top-four D and now looks more like a potential third-pairing type with some offense,” Wheeler said.
As for the rest of the Metropolitan division, the New York Islanders had five prospects make the list, the most out of any team in the division, followed by the Washington Capitals with four.
Cross-state rivals, the Pittsburgh Penguins, had three players make the list with Harrison Brunicke (74) and Rutger McGroarty (84) coming in the fifth tier while Will Horcoff (92) came in tier six.
The New York Rangers also had three with Alberts Smits (9) and Gabe Perreault (19) in the second tier and Liam Greentree (91) in the sixth.
The Blue Jackets, Carolina Hurricanes, and New Jersey Devils also had two prospects each on the list.
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