Flyers trade down to No. 27 as draft-night deals reshape board
The Philadelphia Flyers traded the No. 21 overall pick to the San Jose Sharks for picks No. 27, 62, and 120, leaving Philly with six selections in the 2026 NHL draft. GM Danny Brière stockpiled assets on a busy first round in Buffalo while the Flyers wait late to add a forward or defense prospect from a reshaped board.
Key Takeaways
- Philly moved from No. 21 to No. 27 with San Jose and now holds six picks in the 2026 draft.
- The Flyers also sent Garnet Hathaway and a 2026 sixth-rounder to Florida for a fifth-round pick and a 2027 fourth-rounder.
- Names linked to No. 27 include Maksim Sokolovskii, Jack Hextall, Tommy Bleyl, and goalie Tobias Trejbal.
- The team may have teased a black Liberty Bell alternate logo at its Atlantic City draft party.
- League-wide deals — from JJ Peterka to Boston to Pavel Dorofeyev to New York — reshaped the board before Philly went on the clock.
Why did the Flyers trade down from No. 21 to No. 27?
The Flyers entered Friday holding the 21st selection, with GM Danny Brière and assistant GM Brent Flahr not ruling out movement in either direction. When San Jose came calling, Philadelphia flipped the first-rounder for three picks: No. 27, plus second- and fourth-round selections at Nos. 62 and 120.
That swap pushed the Flyers' first selection to roughly 10:15 p.m. ET, assuming they did not trade down again. The move fits a wider draft-weekend theme for Brière: convert a single premium slot into volume. Earlier Thursday, Philadelphia sent veteran forward Garnet Hathaway and a 2026 sixth-round pick to the Florida Panthers for a fifth-rounder this year and a 2027 fourth-rounder.
Who could the Flyers pick at No. 27?
Before the trade, NHL.com highlighted five forwards in Philadelphia's range, including Maddox Dagenais, Jack Hextall, Oscar Hemming, Wyatt Cullen, and Tynan Lawrence. Dagenais — a 6-foot-4 Quebec Remparts center with speed and scoring touch — carried extra intrigue because of Flyers connections through Remparts GM Simon Gagne.
After sliding to 27, Inquirer draft analysts pointed to a deeper tier: defenseman Maksim Sokolovskii, forward Brooks Rogowski, Hextall, Ryder Cali, blueliner Tommy Bleyl, and possibly goalie Tobias Trejbal. Undersized defensemen Ryan Lin, Bleyl, and Xavier Villeneuve also remained available as Philadelphia approached the clock — a test of whether the club would break from its recent size-first approach on the blue line.
PHLY Sports published Charlie O'Connor's personal top-50 draft board ahead of the first round, offering another local lens on how the class stacks up — even as the Flyers' spot shifted late.
Did the Flyers tease a new alternate logo?
Amid the trade chatter, the Flyers' social team posted draft-party footage from the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Atlantic City showing a black Liberty Bell outline trimmed in highlighter orange on the floor. Inquirer reporters asked whether it could preview a City Connect jersey mark. No official unveiling followed, but the image gave fans something to decode while waiting for pick 27.
What other draft-night moves matter for Philadelphia?
The first round moved fast around the Flyers. Toronto took Penn State forward Gavin McKenna first overall. Buffalo surprised at No. 4 with defenseman Daxon Rudolph. Anaheim sent Mason McTavish to St. Louis, Utah traded JJ Peterka to Boston for two first-round picks, and Vegas moved Pavel Dorofeyev to the Rangers.
On the rumor front, Columbus was fielding calls on Norris Trophy winner Zach Werenski, and Buffalo acquired defenseman Olen Zellweger from Anaheim — removing another young power-play option from a thin market Philadelphia had been watching. Brière finished seventh in GM of the Year voting with one first-place ballot, then spent the night collecting picks instead of rushing a name at 21.
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