0:00
Hello and welcome back to the Broad
0:03
Street Hockey YouTube channel. My name
0:05
is Jacob Russell and I'm here today with
0:08
my fellow prospect extraordinaire
0:10
herself, Maline Campbell. Maddie, how
0:12
are you doing today on this humid late
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August? Honestly, I don't even know if
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it's humid. I always comment on the
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weather and I never know if it's humid
0:20
It's actually beautiful today. Not to
0:21
rub it in if the weather is bad up
0:24
No, it's it's beautiful, but I think
0:25
it's Canadians, you know, it's it's
0:28
weird, right? you get the humidity start
0:30
hitting you and it's it's a whole
0:31
different ballgame than just the sun. I
0:33
think we can take the sun. The humidity
0:35
is where it starts getting a little
0:37
dicey. But uh so late August it's
0:41
another uh that time of the year it's
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another top 25 under 25 for the Flyers
0:46
organization. Uh we do this list every
0:48
single year. We've done it for a very
0:50
long time at this point. I think I saw
0:52
archives going back to like 2016 2015.
0:56
So, this is one of our this is one of
0:57
our babies and and we love doing it in
0:59
the off season. So, um and yeah, Maddie,
1:02
uh I just it's really difficult to
1:05
explain how we rank these guys, but you
1:08
want to give uh want to give the people
1:10
a little primer on how at least you
1:12
voted and and how you like to uh
1:14
quantify or qualify these guys on the
1:18
Yeah. Um I think largely my ranking
1:20
situation is pretty vibesbased. I think
1:23
I definitely give anybody who's played
1:25
like meaningful NHL time a bump, but
1:28
beyond that, it's kind of a I try to
1:31
balance upside and sort of current
1:33
present value, but it's, you know, I try
1:36
to do my ranking again a different day
1:37
and it looks totally different. So, it
1:39
is what it is. What about you?
1:40
Yeah, I I feel the same way and I feel
1:43
the same. I feel we were talking about
1:45
this uh as we were getting ready to do
1:47
the list of we always have a lot of
1:49
discussions around like someone's at 22
1:52
he should have been at 24 like so I feel
1:55
like the the start of the list the the
1:57
guys who are in the 25 to 20 range those
1:59
are the guys that I always have the most
2:01
trouble with because you don't really
2:02
know what they're going to be like these
2:04
guys if they haven't played in the AHL
2:06
especially it's tough for you to uh
2:09
project the the young guys so far into
2:13
Um, right now we're in the Siko
2:15
category. So, I'd like to start with
2:17
number 25, and that is the big boy from
2:20
the AHL, Mr. Hunter McDonald. Hunter
2:23
McDonald is number 25. He opens up our
2:26
list. The 23-year-old drafted in 2022,
2:30
sixth round pick. He's played primarily
2:32
uh the last couple of years in the AHL
2:35
with the Phantoms. His first full season
2:37
was last year with the Phantoms. He
2:38
played 71 games, had 18 points, but
2:41
obviously as a defensive defenseman, not
2:44
necessarily what you're looking for. Um,
2:46
but somebody who saw a lot more of him
2:49
than me, especially in person. Maddie,
2:52
uh, what do you think about Hunter
2:53
McDonald? Where do you have him ranked
2:55
uh, this year? So, I had him all the way
3:00
you know, the back sort of part of my
3:02
list is a pretty mushy area. So, like,
3:06
you know, don't super read into that.
3:07
But, you know, he had kind of a weird
3:11
I think the members of the front office
3:14
were really really talking him up
3:16
heading into this like his proper rookie
3:19
season in the AHL. Um, and you know, he
3:23
was pretty good. Um, but just like
3:26
across the whole of it seemed like he
3:28
never got totally settled into the
3:31
defensive system they were running down
3:33
there or lack thereof. Um, so it it led
3:38
to things being pretty up and down for
3:39
him and like you can definitely still
3:41
see the tools which um is why I'm
3:44
definitely not out on him as a prospect
3:46
at all. But um yeah, it's it's still
3:50
very much a project and I think as a
3:54
result the management is like cooled off
3:57
a little bit how much they're hyping him
4:00
Yeah, like you said, I mean the start of
4:02
this year it seemed like uh McDonald was
4:05
a guy that they were looking to bring up
4:07
maybe partway through the season, right?
4:09
I I put him at 21. Um nothing crazy,
4:13
right? I I feel like just because of his
4:15
frame, um I'm sure we're going to get to
4:17
that 6'4 205 as a left shot as a
4:22
if he doesn't even have the skills, I
4:24
have a bit more projectability for him
4:26
than than maybe some of the other
4:28
defenseman we'll get into on this list,
4:30
uh who are also phantoms later on. But
4:33
yeah, I McDonald's, he's a big boy. He's
4:36
able to move the puck. He's not like a
4:38
complete slug out there. Um, and you saw
4:42
with how this last uh this past year's
4:44
draft went, the Flyers are picking
4:46
ogres. They're trying to get guys who
4:48
are big and then we can maybe teach him
4:50
to play hockey a bit better later on
4:52
down the line. So, again, very low
4:55
prospect capital uh invested in
4:58
McDonald. It's not like he's a guy that
4:59
we expect to uh to break in and be a top
5:02
four guy, but uh Jason McNeel had him
5:06
11, which is kind of wild to me. But
5:09
I like it. Yeah. Like listen, I think I
5:11
think if you ask the the front office,
5:13
they'd say a lot of the same things that
5:15
Jason said. You know, he he organizes
5:18
list. He said a lot of gut feeling, a
5:21
lot of hunches, lot of going off of the
5:25
projectability of frames. And for a
5:28
defenseman, McDonald's got everything
5:30
you want. You just got to have a little
5:32
bit more, you know, sharpening around
5:33
the edges and and maybe he turns into
5:35
something. And yeah, it has there's not
5:38
necessarily a ton of guys on the flyers
5:40
who can put somebody on their ass. And
5:42
McDonald is has some snarl. He's tough.
5:44
He's physical. And he brings a different
5:46
dimension than say if you were to put
5:49
Emil Andre as the seventh or eighth
5:50
defenseman. That's where Andre's kind of
5:52
gotten um a bit of a roadblock is that
5:54
he doesn't fill that sort of role. And
5:56
when you have Jamie Ddale, Cam York,
5:58
Travis Sanheim already trying to play
6:00
offensive games, might be better to have
6:02
a guy like McDonald on the back end to
6:04
sort of give him a little bit give give
6:07
the the defense a little bit more to uh
6:10
dimensions to to work with. So, moving
6:13
on to number 24 is somebody that I'm a
6:15
bit higher on in Cole Canubal out of
6:17
Notre Dame in the NCAA. uh last year 34
6:20
games played, 39 points, and uh quite
6:23
quite a pretty solid season from him.
6:26
And his second year in the uh NCAA as a
6:33
Uh yeah, from the he was in the USA
6:36
Fargo before. So yeah, his second year
6:38
uh in in the NCAA. Some potential here
6:42
Yeah, definitely. and especially like as
6:45
a slightly older NCAA prospect. He's 21
6:49
already. Um he took that year in the USL
6:56
um definitely seems to have benefited
6:59
his game. Um he's not like a super
7:01
flashy guy. Um but I I like his skill
7:04
set a lot. It seems like he's getting
7:07
just a little bit better every year. He
7:08
looked more mobile at development camp,
7:10
which I love to see. Um, and I also
7:13
really loved what Brent Flair had to say
7:15
about him um, at the end of camp in
7:18
terms of like what does the organization
7:21
need to see from him um, in order to
7:23
feel good about uh, giving him an entry-
7:27
level contract at the end of the season
7:28
and he just said he's got to finish the
7:31
season like they're feeling good about
7:32
him. So, he's a guy who, you know, still
7:36
a lot of runway ahead of him, but it's
7:38
that the uh the organization's excited
7:40
about, I'm excited about, and could play
7:44
uh a role in the future. Um I had him 23
7:47
just to backtrack. So, um feels low, but
7:50
like still a guy that I'm really excited
7:54
Yeah, I had him 24, right, too, but
7:56
again, he's another guy I looked at this
7:59
year. Um, and when you compare him to
8:00
somebody like Carson Dart, who were the
8:02
Flyers signed and who was also an
8:04
overager, uh, coming out of the NCAA, I
8:07
think Kenuba brings you more. I think
8:09
he's a bit his skill set's a bit more
8:11
varied. Um, he he does like to get to
8:13
the dirty areas. I think it's it's kind
8:16
of cliche, but he does have a little bit
8:18
of his dad in him. It's not going to be
8:20
anything flashy. It's not going to be
8:21
anything crazy. He's a bit smaller,
8:23
obviously. He's not huge and tall and
8:24
lanky like Mike was, but um Cole's got
8:28
that same sort of gritty play style that
8:30
I think can can translate, right? I see
8:32
a lot of these guys um in the NCAA as
8:36
older scorers if they play a certain way
8:40
that is kind of perimeter centric. It's
8:42
hard to it's it's hard to really
8:44
translate that even to the AHL, never
8:46
never mind the N uh the NHL. So with
8:49
Kenubal and his ability to get to the
8:51
front of the net and kind of be a bit
8:52
bigger, um play be uh beyond his size, I
8:55
think is is also something that I I
8:57
noticed in the little bit that I watched
8:59
him. I I I like him for the future. Um
9:02
even if he doesn't he's not going to be
9:03
any bigger than the 510 he is now, but
9:05
he's got a solid frame on him that I
9:07
think he's he's going to be hard to move
9:08
in front of the net. Uh Jason Pollinsky,
9:10
resident sandwich expert, had him 16th
9:14
uh and he had more bias towards college
9:17
players, which I think makes sense. I
9:18
mean, Kenubal's playing against I think
9:21
the hardest competition he can get at
9:23
his age bracket right now. Um, besides
9:26
if he made the jump to the AHL, of
9:28
course. So, you know, I think he's he's
9:31
got the potential to really take a jump
9:34
next year if he's able to put up, let's
9:37
say, 50 points or something of that
9:39
nature. really um pop make make some
9:42
eyepopping statements next year with
9:44
with uh Notre Dame um and and try to get
9:47
that entry level deal and see what he
9:50
Yeah, and like Jason also said in his
9:52
ranking process like Canub's got the NHL
9:55
pedigree and that's valuable.
9:57
It is especially with again the
9:59
franchise, there's a lot of NHL related
10:03
people hanging around. I mean, you know,
10:05
that's not to say that that's going to
10:07
be the only thing uh that that dictates
10:10
whether or not he joins the NHL team at
10:12
some point, but doesn't hurt. Be honest.
10:15
Doesn't hurt. I kept Laffy around long
10:18
enough coaching in the AHL, so at least
10:22
uh Cole won't have to deal with that
10:24
anymore. Anyway, someone who did
10:27
a good segue into our next player.
10:30
Yeah, we're we're on the same track now.
10:34
Samu Tuala, the 22-year-old second
10:37
rounder who is still down in the AHL. Uh
10:42
decent season last year uh pointwise,
10:44
Maddie, but I think there was a bit more
10:46
under the hood that had um the front
10:49
office wanting more.
10:51
Yeah, he he's a tricky one where it's
10:53
like the offensive capabilities like
10:56
there's no question about what he can do
10:58
there. um he's got the speed, he's got
11:00
the shot, he can be productive at this
11:02
level. But even heading into the season,
11:06
um they were pretty clear that they
11:09
wanted him to be working on, you know,
11:11
how he's supporting the puck, how he's
11:13
playing below the circles, and like
11:15
doing more things when he doesn't have
11:19
I hate to say being a better teammate
11:22
in that regard. like that feels kind of
11:23
harsh, but you know, in that vein and I
11:27
think we saw some progress there, but it
11:30
was really up and down across the whole
11:32
of the season. Um, I saw a lot of him
11:36
looking frustrated when he wasn't
11:38
scoring and didn't really seem to know
11:39
what to do. Um, getting a little tunnel
11:42
visioned there, which was frustrating at
11:45
times. It really was a shame. um he uh
11:49
seemed like he was getting things moving
11:50
in the right direction again and then he
11:52
like immediately got hurt and was done
11:54
for the rest of the season. So, I don't
11:57
know where that leaves us heading into
12:00
Um it's a tricky one for him. He still
12:02
made my list. It was
12:04
close. Um I had him at 24. Looks like he
12:07
fell off your list in
12:08
He did. He did this year unfortunately.
12:10
And you know I it's tough for me and two
12:16
When I ever whenever I watch Phantom's
12:18
games, besides him actually scoring or
12:21
putting up points, it's hard to notice
12:23
him on the ice. He doesn't necessarily
12:25
have these bad games where he or these
12:27
good games rather where he doesn't
12:29
score. I think that's also what, you
12:31
know, the the front office is trying to
12:33
to get him more to focus on in his game
12:36
because as a second rounder at 22 now,
12:40
it seems like as the more and more
12:43
prospects, the barks of the world start
12:45
to join in. Luchenko is going to be
12:47
there uh eventually, right, in the AHL.
12:50
If not, he just skips right to the NHL,
12:52
right? But it's still going to be um the
12:55
the competition for that roster spot.
12:57
And the same thing with Alex Bump. Like
12:58
a guy like Alex Bump, he's vaulted over
13:01
Tualla immediately, right? Um and and
13:04
Tualla seems now like he's more in the
13:06
Devin Kaplan sort of Carson Dart range
13:09
of guys who can jump in here and there,
13:11
but I don't even think they want to put
13:13
him in the bottom six because of his
13:16
play style. So, it's it's going to be
13:18
really tough for him. Uh Jpo also had
13:20
him 14th this year as well and he made
13:23
actually a really good point um that
13:26
that I kind of agree with and maybe if I
13:29
would have considered it I might have
13:30
had him at the end of my list. Thinks
13:32
there's a lot of unlocked potential with
13:34
proper coaching. Um, I think there's
13:38
definitely a chance that if you get a
13:42
get his confidence, Tuval's confidence
13:44
in gear, um, for a full season, for a
13:47
full 82, um, he can definitely bring
13:51
something that he can unlock something
13:52
that could make him a middle six scoring
13:56
option and and force him into the NHL,
13:58
if not in Philly, then somewhere else.
13:59
But yeah, I think I think Jason brings
14:02
up a good point there. Yeah, and I think
14:04
it's valuable too that um the Phantom's
14:07
new coach was an internal promotion. Uh
14:10
John Snowden was around the last couple
14:11
of seasons and he knows him as a player.
14:13
Um even if Lapy's messaging got a little
14:16
stale, wasn't really getting through to
14:18
him by the end there. Um there's some
14:21
familiarity. I think that'll help him
14:25
Well, it's it's almost coming to that
14:27
time for him uh where he
14:30
he's going to need to make a jump or
14:32
he's going to end up somewhere else,
14:36
and it's weird to think about because
14:39
He's so young, but there are just so
14:42
There's there's a lot of middle six
14:44
wingers that are potentially there that
14:45
are better than him. So, that's really
14:47
his issue thus far. Moving on, number
14:51
22, um, four years younger, big jump in
14:55
age, back down to Carter Amo, the 2025
14:59
second rounder that the Flyers picked up
15:01
last, well, this past draft, I suppose.
15:05
Uh, not much to say here unfortunately
15:08
because he doesn't tend to play that
15:11
much, but all I can tell you is 65 225
15:16
right-handed shot going to Boston
15:18
University this year. It's hard to say
15:24
Yeah. Um, I think there's uh definitely
15:26
a really intriguing sort of package
15:29
there, but um he wasn't on my ranking.
15:33
He was one of the last guys to fall off
15:35
for me just because like there are so
15:38
many prospects that we have to rank
15:40
towards the bottom of that list and like
15:42
I haven't gotten a lot of eyes on him.
15:44
So, you know, if he is a big start to
15:47
his college season, I think he could be
15:50
um in my personal ranking, but that's
15:52
just kind of like where I'm at. Uh I did
15:55
see him a a little bit at the national
15:58
team development program down uh the
16:01
USHL in that system, but yeah, he looks
16:03
good. Um he can definitely move, but
16:06
again, it's like, can you do this over a
16:08
full season with contact, with pressure?
16:11
Like even at the best of times, I've
16:13
been pretty open about my uh the dubious
16:16
nature of the USHL, especially for a
16:18
defenseman. Like, you know, there's not
16:20
like crazy patterns of play coming at
16:22
you. There's not a ton of skill. Like
16:24
guys like Riker Lee are hard to defend,
16:26
but it it's kind of a dime a dozen down
16:27
there. It's a lot more of just just a
16:30
bunch of guys skating around trying to
16:32
figure some out and get as many
16:34
points as they can to get draft eligible
16:36
and and really make their name known.
16:38
But uh Mo, um I was looking at something
16:41
Jay Pandalfo said recently. Um he's the
16:45
head coach at Boston University and
16:47
Pendalfo was saying just like they're
16:50
not going to rush him into this. they
16:51
really want to play him in a prominent
16:54
role. So, at the start of the year, he's
16:56
probably not going to join the team like
16:59
right away. He's not going to start the
17:00
season. They want to give him as much of
17:01
a ramp as they can, especially as an
17:03
18-year-old defenseman, right? I mean,
17:05
he's going to be he's going to take some
17:06
time to really um get used to the the
17:10
college ranks. And like as you said, he
17:12
was unranked for you. I had him at 22.
17:14
Um I really like the projectable size.
17:17
Um, I like the ability if you can if
17:19
you're that size and you can skate for
17:21
me. Um, as long as he stays healthy, I
17:23
mean, if he proves that he can't stay
17:25
healthy this year, he'll probably fall
17:26
off my list, uh, at least for now, uh,
17:29
going into next year. But, you know,
17:31
there's definitely a package there where
17:33
you can look at it and say, "Wow, you
17:34
can dream on this sort of archetype of a
17:37
defenseman. If he's able to really, um,
17:39
put it all together and stay healthy, he
17:41
can be a real steal at the point of the
17:43
draft where you got him."
17:44
Yeah. So Brad had him at 15th. He was
17:48
the uh person who ranked him the highest
17:49
and he said that he prioritized the
17:52
potential and upside more than anything
17:54
which I think we both agree with. Yeah.
17:55
Um that's what you have to look at. It's
17:58
a matter of how much that stands out for
18:01
you just as and how much belief you can
18:03
put into it, right? Because you didn't
18:06
even if you did, it's hard to find every
18:08
single US game or every single NTDP game
18:11
he played to really get the full picture
18:14
that aren't just highlights. But yeah,
18:17
quote here, "Tall right shot defenseman
18:19
who skates well for his height is a take
18:21
any day." And that is 100% true. I
18:24
cannot get mad at that take. Heading
18:28
into our final list of the first five,
18:33
uh, number 21, Helga Grants, 23-year-old
18:37
was, uh, acquired via the trade from the
18:41
Kings that sent Ivan Prover off the
18:45
AHL player last year, the year before,
18:48
uh, 23 points in 66 games in the AHL.
18:51
Played a cup of coffee with the Flyers.
18:54
uh just played six games, had an assist,
18:56
didn't really show much. Um
18:59
he's a weird one for me. I I I'll let
19:01
you take the floor to start, but he's a
19:05
Yeah, I mean, he got an immediate kind
19:07
of boost in my ranking for having played
19:10
some NHL games this year. So, that's
19:12
kind of went into that. But, um I don't
19:15
know. I generally liked his season with
19:19
the Phantoms. I think we tend to forget
19:21
even though he's been in the league for
19:23
forever that he's still pretty young,
19:26
still just 23 years old. Just turned 23,
19:29
Um, and yeah, I think he's been making
19:32
some nice incremental progress. It
19:34
seemed like he's unlocked some things in
19:37
his game uh this past season. I've liked
19:39
his offensive contributions, like what
19:41
he was doing sort of from a playmaking
19:43
stance. Um, he's not like the flashiest
19:46
player, but I think everything was
19:48
working pretty well for him. Um, yeah,
19:53
no, no complaints there. Like,
19:55
yeah, I had him off my list, which I
19:58
think is maybe a little harsh,
20:00
especially because I I had a Miko on
20:02
there and he is barely a hockey player
20:05
um at times. Um, but Gron for me, he
20:09
kind of slots into that same sort of
20:12
mosh pit with Dennis Gilbert, Noah
20:14
Jules, the newly acquired guys, Agor
20:16
Igor Zamula. Um, they're all in this
20:19
sort of bucket. Even Hunter McDonald
20:21
probably could be put in there for this
20:22
upcoming year. And I just don't see a
20:26
world where Grz necessarily gets
20:30
the time to show that he's anything more
20:33
than what he currently is. if he comes
20:35
and plays in the NHL this year and and
20:37
is able to really take that spot from
20:39
guys like even Amil Andre Aigor Zamula
20:42
like he's gonna have to jump a lot of
20:43
guys uh to make the NHL. So we'll have
20:46
to see what happened. Kyle, uh, who is
20:48
currently, uh, our linesman right now,
20:51
uh, he said that there's a bit of a
20:53
recency bias in this ranking because he
20:55
did like his, uh, his step last season.
20:57
Like you said, he he looked a bit more
20:58
mobile. Uh, he can get a bit more
21:01
comfortable in the AHL and then maybe
21:04
um, bring that sort of play style to the
21:07
NHL. And Kyle even said he doesn't think
21:09
he's going to turn into a stud, but you
21:11
can see him being, you know, a bottom
21:13
six, a bottom pair guy uh, into the
21:15
future. And that's just sort of what you
21:20
can expect from him, right? It's it's
21:21
whether or not you place value in a guy
21:23
like that um coming out of of the AHL
21:28
over just signing random veterans that
21:32
most teams do uh heading into training
21:34
camp, right? And competing for that
21:35
spot. If you think Gron's can maybe even
21:40
the number a number four five spot and
21:43
actually get in the defensive rotation
21:45
and not be on the bubble, then yeah, I
21:47
think that makes perfect sense to put
21:50
him at 21. But that's all we got for
21:53
today. We will have another video coming
21:56
soon where we start to get into a bit
21:58
more meat of the rankings. uh get a bit
22:01
more uh sexy names getting out here at
22:07
Matt, you got anything else about the
22:09
guys on this list? Anybody else maybe
22:11
you even wanted to mention?
22:13
Um nobody specifically, but I just think
22:16
we sort of touched on this last week
22:18
too, but um it definitely speaks to the
22:20
depth of the prospect pool at this
22:22
point. like, you know, maybe it's not as
22:24
deep as it has been over the past, you
22:26
know, in years past, but you know, we're
22:29
down in the 20s and we've got some guys
22:30
who might legitimately play meaningful
22:33
NHL games. So, pretty good.
22:36
Yeah. I mean, like, listen, Amo,
22:40
second round pick, 18year-old at 22. I
22:43
think there's a lot of fan bases who
22:45
would have him in a top 10, you know, if
22:47
they were really high on him just
22:48
because of that. how how much you get
22:52
the frame, the speed, um the ability to
22:55
kind of move the puck, right? And then
22:57
you have two guys in McDonald and Grimes
22:58
who could both play NHL games this year,
23:00
right? And two Amala could as well. Um
23:04
so it it's it's going to be interesting
23:05
to see where these guys end up landing.
23:07
I think there's a chance that some of us
23:09
look a little bad. I think maybe, you
23:11
know, Helgi Gr might make me look a
23:13
little goofy for putting some guys that
23:15
I put in front of him in front of him.
23:17
But hey, we'll have to see. But
23:19
that's the fun of the rankings.
23:21
That's just the fun of the 25 under 25,
23:24
man. We just get to argue about it. And
23:26
most of these guys will never play an
23:27
NHL game. So that's all the fun of it.
23:30
But we're done having fun for today.
23:32
We'll go be back soon uh for the number
23:35
20 through 16 uh on the top 25 under 25.
23:39
But for Maddie, for Kyle, for everyone
23:42
at broadstreet hockey.com, I am Jacob
23:44
Russell and thanks for watching.