Philadelphia Flyers 2026 NHL Mock Draft 2.0: A Flashy Trade-Up – The Hockey Writers – Philadelphia Flyers

Only two weeks remain until the 2026 NHL Draft. But for the Philadelphia Flyers, there’s not all that much excitement, thanks to ending a five-season playoff drought—picking at 21^st overall doesn’t exactly grab any headlines. That was reflected in my first mock, where I didn’t have the team doing anything all that special.

In this mock, that changes. Here’s a full mock draft (rounds one, two, three, six, and seven), including a flashy trade-up inside the top 10.

Round 1, Pick 9: Daxon Rudolph, D, Prince Albert Raiders (WHL)

A trade-up of this magnitude is admittedly a bit out there, but the Flyers should ideally be looking to make a splash. In this mock trade, the Florida Panthers send their ninth-overall pick to Philadelphia for defenseman Rasmus Ristolainen and the 21^st-overall pick.

Dropping 12 spots would be a hefty cost for Florida, and perhaps the Flyers would have to add more in real life. But the thinking is that the best No. 5 blueliner on the market is worth the trouble for a team that saw fellow right-shot defensemen Aaron Ekblad and Seth Jones miss a combined 40 games this past season.

With the ninth pick, the Flyers take Daxon Rudolph: a right-shot defenseman out of the Western Hockey League (WHL), standing at 6-foot-2.5 and 205 pounds. He scored 37 goals and added 68 assists in 87 total games—regular season and playoffs—in 2025-26.

To preface, I’m assuming that Swedish center Viggo Björck is already gone by this point—a player who could do wonders for the Flyers’ weakness down the middle. But you’re not exactly “settling” for Rudolph here. He fills a huge need, and his ceiling is sky-high.

While the big-bodied Rudolph has shown flashes defensively, that’s not the focal point of his game for me. He could become a reliable shutdown defender with years of development ahead, but what’s exciting about him now is his play-driving and offense.

Rudolph loves to shoot the puck, can carry it up the ice with ease, and has impressive handling. To me, his offensive game rivals Chase Reid‘s for the best in the class. In fact, I’d go as far as to say that it’s up there with any defenseman of the 2020s.

General manager Daniel Brière has invested significant capital into the defense since taking over, but drafting Rudolph could put a bow on it all. If the 18-year-old defenseman is still on the board at ninth overall, the Flyers should take interest.

Round 2, Pick 53: Lavr Gashilov, C, Avto Yekaterinburg (MHL)

In the second round, the Flyers take a chance on a relatively tall center (6-foot-2) who produced at an explosive scoring clip in Russia’s top junior league. Though he was nearly eligible for the 2025 NHL Draft due to his Sept. 23, 2007, birthday, Lavr Gashilov would be an intriguing pick.

Gashilov recorded 16 goals and 53 assists in 51 regular-season games for the MHL’s Avto Yekaterinburg. His goal total was low, but on a point-per-game basis, he was slightly ahead of 2024 first-round pick Yegor Surin’s draft-year campaign. They’re different players, but Surin has gone on to pop in the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL).

What makes Gashilov worth drafting at No. 53 is that he has small-area skill and tons of creativity. He’s an average to below-average skater, but he makes up for that with his offensive potential. While I don’t see him becoming a superstar, he has the upside to be much more than a bottom-sixer at the NHL level.

Round 3, Pick 85: Tyus Sparks, F, Spokane Chiefs (WHL)

Since 2018, the Flyers have only drafted two players out of the WHL with a top-100 pick (Carson Bjarnason and Matthew Gard). In this mock, they match that total, taking Spokane Chiefs forward Tyus Sparks at 85^th overall.

In 74 total games between the Vancouver Giants and the Chiefs, Sparks recorded 30 goals and 38 assists—nearly a point per game. What sets him apart from similarly productive players is that his skating is a strength, and his engagement is terrific. It’s not hard to envision a world where he becomes a really solid pro.

Sparks’ skill set gives me winger vibes (and he lined up at right wing for the Chiefs often), but he makes it work down the middle, too. He has a “culture guy” play style.

Round 6, Pick 181: Braidy Wassilyn, LW, London Knights (OHL)

There was a time when Braidy Wassilyn was being mocked late in the first round. However, he finished the season 105^th on NHL Central Scouting’s final draft rankings among North American skaters. Maybe this is too much of an overcorrection, but I have him falling to a London Knights-friendly organization in the Flyers at 181^st overall.

The 5-foot-11, 194-pound left-winger recorded 19 goals and 27 assists in 67 total games this season between the Niagara IceDogs and the Knights. Being under 6-foot, a winger, and producing at that clip could make Wassilyn fall a bit, but he’s still an intriguing player.

I’m a fan of Wassilyn’s engagement, skating, and playmaking. That skill set could have him selected as early as the third or fourth rounds, so in the sixth, he’d be a worthwhile pick-up.

Round 7, Pick 213: Zachary Jovanovski, G, Guelph Storm (OHL)

With their last pick, I have the Flyers taking a goaltender. Zachary Jovanovski became the Guelph Storm’s full-time starter in 2025-26, appearing in 52 regular-season games and putting up a .890 save percentage, a 3.39 goals-against average, and a 25-20-4 record.

Those numbers aren’t all that impressive, but getting a 52-game workload could lead to Jovanovski getting drafted—it’s pretty unusual. At 6-foot-3 and 185 pounds, he has the size that teams tend to like as well.

If the Flyers trade Ristolainen, would you want to see the team trade into the top 10? If not, do you want them to target an NHL center? Feel free to leave your thoughts in the comment section!