A center with ‘fantastic’ hockey sense could give Flyers option to trade down

A center with ‘fantastic’ hockey sense could give Flyers option to trade down originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

For the first time in a while, the Flyers are coming off a playoff run.

That, of course, makes life a little different for the club’s amateur scouting staff leading up to the 2026 NHL draft. Barring a trade, the Flyers will pick at 21st overall. It’s their lowest first-round spot since 2020.

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But that was when the Flyers drafted a foundation piece, grabbing Tyson Foerster at 23rd overall.

So the Flyers know the draft is still critical to what they want to do, even when they’re lower in the order.

“We’ve said it for a long time, we wanted to build a team that was going to be here for a long time; not just to go for it for a year or two,” general manager Danny Briere said last month. “That’s still the same approach on my end.”

After the recent trade with the Maple Leafs, the Flyers have only four picks in this draft, which will be held June 26-27. The first round is Friday at 7 p.m. ET, while Rounds 2-7 are Saturday starting at 11 a.m. ET.

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“I’ll tell you how I feel about drafts and I’ll be totally blunt with you,” TSN director of scouting Craig Button said June 2 in a phone interview with NBC Sports Philadelphia. “I think it’s f—ing bulls–t when I hear about, ‘Oh, this draft isn’t as good.’ Here are the numbers. Approximately 45 players from any draft will play 350 games or more in the NHL. It might be 47 one year, 42 another year. That’s the number — you get 45 players that’ll play 350 games or more with varying degrees of success.

“And I know this about the draft. The teams that get good players from the draft say it was a good draft. The teams that don’t get good players from the draft say it wasn’t a good draft. So when people start telling me about a draft ahead of time, I call bulls–t.”

Last summer, the Flyers made nine selections, with six coming over the first two rounds. Porter Martone was their headliner at sixth overall. Now the Flyers will try to hit on a pick in the 20s.

“What you’re trying to do is find a player that you feel has the potential to be an NHL player,” Button said. “That might be a third-line center, that might be a second-line scoring winger. Hey, listen, maybe you get David Pastrnak, who’s a superstar (drafted 25th overall in 2014).

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“But the focus has to be on, ‘OK, what type of player do we like, what type of player do we think the guy can be?’ And then get after it and understand what the development path is, and then try to help that player be the best he can be. Put a stake in the ground and celebrate who you’re drafting.”

Before the draft arrives, we’re breaking down first-round targets for the Flyers.

Next up:

Egor Shilov

Position: Center
Height: 6-foot
Weight: 177
Shoots: Left
Team: Victoriaville

Scouting report

Shilov is highly skilled and under control when the puck is on his stick. He’ll survey the ice and generate offense with creativity. He also possesses a sneaky shot.

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“I feel like he’s best when he plays the game a little slower and he can slow things down and make those right decisions,” Daily Faceoff associate editor and prospect analyst Steven Ellis said last Tuesday in a phone interview with NBC Sports Philadelphia. “Because he doesn’t make a lot of bad decisions. Like, I think his hockey sense is actually fantastic and I think he’s a really good playmaker.”

The 18-year-old Russian led all QMJHL rookies with 82 points (32 goals, 50 assists) in 63 games for Victoriaville. He had two hat tricks and a pair of five-point performances.

“When he goes 1-on-1, he doesn’t really miss many plays, he doesn’t make many mistakes,” Ellis said. “He can go up there and he’ll pull off a quick move and defensemen seem to really struggle with that.”

Shilov’s methodical pace may elicit concerns from NHL teams. Will he be able to make plays through contact and with far less time and space? Can he do it along the boards? The QMJHL is geared toward offense and open ice.

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“He’s afraid of going anywhere near a physical player,” Ellis said. “He does really shy away from that. I think there are just points where I want to see him make plays at a higher speed and quicker. … The real question is did he get a lot of points this year because he’s a good player or did he get a lot of points because he was playing against lower than average QMJHL defensemen? I think that’s what makes it interesting.”

But Shilov is pretty sound in his two-way approach. He won 54.8 percent of his faceoffs and had a minus-11 rating on a team that sported a minus-69 goal differential. He’s the 26th-ranked player on Ellis’ final top-120 draft board.

“He has got the ability to shut down guys when he really wants to; it’s just being able to do that every single time,” Ellis said. “The one name that gets thrown around a lot is you’re hoping he kind of has a Matvei Gridin development where he has got that talent and if he could just show it every shift.”

Gridin went to the Flames at 28th overall in 2024. He had 20 points in 37 games for Calgary this season.

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Shilov is No. 18 on Button’s June 17 list and No. 26 on EliteProspects.com. Among North Americans (because he played in the QMJHL), he’s No. 19 on NHL Central Scouting.

Fit with Flyers

If the Flyers like Shilov and they feel he’s a reach at No. 21, they could trade back to grab him later in the first round. Considering the Flyers have only four picks in this draft, it would give them an opportunity to gain another one.

Shilov plays a premium position and the Flyers could use more options down the middle in their system. He’d also be able to relate to Matvei Michkov and potentially play on his line in the future.

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But it’s fair to wonder if the Flyers will target a player with more speed and size to his game.

More targets

• Could Lawrence’s early jump to college have him fall to Flyers in draft?

• Will Flyers eye 6-foot-4 forward with ‘goal-scoring hands’ at No. 21?

• Palmieri ‘type of player’ may be available for Flyers at No. 21 in draft

• Russian center with pro build has interesting case for Flyers at No. 21

• Lin has ‘Brandon Montour profile,’ but will he be there for Flyers at No. 21?

• D-man with ‘unbelievable maturity to his game’ could be option for Flyers at No. 21

• ‘Second-line center all day long’ should intrigue Flyers in draft

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• ‘This kid is a hell of a player’ — Flyers could draft 45-goal, 104-point winger

• Is Novotny, a winger that’s ‘so dangerous around the net,’ a fit for Flyers?

• A Drysdale type of defenseman for the Flyers at No. 21 in the draft?

• Another OHL first-rounder for Flyers? Klepov, with 97 points, has tons of appeal