Jett Luchanko won’t participate in Flyers’ rookie camp for precautionary reasons
Luchanko, 19, missed development camp in July because of a groin ailment but is expected to be ready for main camp, which begins next Thursday. He is expected to push for an NHL roster spot.
The Flyers opened rookie camp without one of their top prospects.
Jett Luchanko, who did not skate at development camp because of a groin injury, was held out of on-ice activities as a precaution on Thursday.
A team source told The Inquirer that the Flyers are holding him back for the team’s main camp, which starts next week. He will not skate in the two games against the New York Rangers on Friday and Saturday in Allentown, with the source adding that the Flyers want to evaluate other players. The news comes after a source said Monday that Luchanko was expected to be a full participant in rookie camp, pending clearance to participate.
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Drafted 13th overall in 2024, Luchanko is a speedy center with a high hockey IQ who should push for an NHL spot this fall. He got his first taste of the pros last season when he broke camp with the Flyers and skated in four games before being returned to Guelph of the Ontario Hockey League. Luchanko tallied 21 goals and 56 points in 46 OHL games last season.
After his season ended with the Storm, Luchanko had a 16-game stint with Lehigh Valley of the American Hockey League, which included seven playoff games. He did not record a point in the NHL, but Luchanko, who turned 19 in August, racked up nine assists in the AHL, including two in the first-round series clincher against Wilkes-Barre/Scranton.
During that impressive postseason run, Luchanko utilized his speed to be first on pucks, sliced through opposing defenses, and showcased his passing skills, including the two exceptional setups in Game 2 of the first round.
The Flyers want Luchanko to focus on shooting the puck more this season as he looks to take the next step.
“I wouldn’t say shooting’s his thing,” Riley Armstrong, the Flyers’ director of player development, told The Inquirer in April. “I think that’s one thing that we’re working on with him. He’s always been kind of that pass-first guy.
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“I know a lot of guys in the NHL are pass-first guys, and they develop that shooting threat later on in their career. And a lot of it is confidence, having confidence that you can beat a goalie. I think some guys want to try and get in really tight to beat the goalie and I think once you can develop that shot, you can start to beat goalies from the top of the circles area, and you kind of rely on it a little bit more.”
The hope is that with the confidence to shoot, coupled with his passing, he will become a dual threat on the ice, especially given his terrific speed. If this week’s absence is just precautionary, as the Flyers say, Luchanko will get a chance to show his progress when the main camp begins and he vies for an NHL spot.
If he does not break camp with the Flyers, Luchanko will have to return to Guelph because of the NHL-CHL agreement, which prevents players under 20 years old from going to the AHL. That rule will change next season when there will be one allowed exemption per team.