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Twenty-seven days remain until the start of the Philadelphia Flyers main training camp on Thursday, September 17, 2026. Barring a trade — nothing is imminent from all indications — general manager Daniel Briere is prepared to enter the 2026-27 season with the roster on hand.
Key Upcoming Dates
- Rookie Camp opens: Friday, September 11, 2026
- Rookie Series vs. Rangers: September 12–13, 2026
- Main Training Camp opens: Thursday, September 17, 2026
- Preseason opener: Monday, September 21, 2026
- Regular season opener: Wednesday, September 30, 2026
O&B Puckcast: Lyle Richardson
On the newest edition of the O&B Puckcast, hosts Isiah and Chef (Brendan Gillespie) speak with Lyle Richardson of Spector’s Hockey. Going around the NHL alphabetically, the panel takes a deep dive on the challenges and opportunities that away all 32 teams.
Also in this episode, Isaiah and Chef catch you up on the latest Flyers news. Topics include Jack Berglund’s return to the SHL, Nikita Grebenkin signing a two-year deal, the positive impressions Carter Amico made at the WJSS, expectations for Matvei Michkov following his rigorous offseason training, key upcoming dates on the Flyers’ early-season calendar, and more.
Luchanko turns 20
Flyers center prospect Jett Luchanko celebrates his 20th birthday on August 21. He is currently recovering from core muscle surgery, correcting a problem he de with for the last season and a half.
Drafted by the Flyers with the 13th overall pick of the 2024 NHL Draft. Right from the start, it was a controversial pick. To his credit, Luchanko has never focused on skeptics’ opinions of his upside or performances in the last two World Junior Championships. His sole focus has been on using his speed and two-savvy to become a solid pro. At age 19, he’s played eight NHL regular season games and one playoff game. Additionally, last year, he played nine AHL regular season games plus seven playoff matches.
At the junior level — and the AHL — Luchanko has shown potential to be an above-average playmaking forward with a mature all-around game. However, key aspects of Luchanko’s game have come under scrutiny.
- Reluctance to shoot the puck, despite having a hard shot.
- Questionable assertiveness and playing overly “safe” hockey.
- Average size for a potential NHL center.
- Underwhelming offensive performance at the World Juniors.
However, it’s important to keep in mind just how young Luchanko is. He’s only a few weeks older than 2025 first-round pick Porter Martone. Their respective birthdays fell on either side of the cutoff for the 2024 Draft. More importantly, no two players develop on an identical timetable.
The Flyers showed enough faith in Luchanko to dress in in Game Four of the Eastern Conference Semifinal series against the Carolina Hurricanes. With the team facing elimination, Luchanko played a third right wing spot. He did not look overwhelmed in his Stanley Cup playoff debut. However, he also did not make much positive impact, either.
The bad news on Luchanko’s development so far: he has not made a significant impact in any his NHL games played to date. More concerning, he also failed to dominate at the junior level in his Draft-plus-two season. Based on norms, he tracks so far as more of a future bottom-six forward than a likely candidate for a top-six spot.
Cold War in Philly: Streaming and in person
The Cold War in Philly documentary is available Amazon Prime, Apple TV. YouTube TV and Fandango.ank
Meanwhile, on September 23, the National Liberty Museum is hosting a screening, Q&A panel and reception. Join filmmaker Joe Amodei, Joe Watson Hockey and Brad Marsh.
I’ll be on the panel, too. To steal a line from the late, great Mitch Hedberg, if anyone wants to come talk to me after the show, I’ll be… (pause)… surprised.
Win a free ticket to meet Dan Vladar
On August 29, 2026, Flyers goaltender Dan Vladar will be do an in-store appearance at Carl’s Cards and Collectibles. Through our friends at Carl’s, Hockey Hot Stove has arrange for one Hockey Hot Stove member to receive a free autograph ticket for the event.
Vladar will be in the store from 1:00 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. EDT. The contest winner must be able to attend in person to redeem. To enter:
- Follow Hockey Hot Stove (https://x.com/HockeyHStove) and Carl’s Cards (https://x.com/carlscards) on Twitter/X.
- Reply: VladdyHHS
The winner will be selected at random and notified on Wednesday, August 26.
Team Toyota Prospect Countdown: Heikki Ruohonen (#11)
Position: Center
Selected: 2024 4th Round, 107th overall
Listed Height: 6-foot-2
Listed Weight: 215 pounds
Shoots: Left
2025-26 team: Harvard University (NCAA), Team Finland U20 (WJC)
2025-26 NCAA stats: 28 GP, 6 G, 13 A, 19 PTS, `8 PIM, E
2026 WJC Stats: 7 GP, 3 G, 6 A, 9 PTS, 4 PIM, +6
The skinny: The big Finnish center draws much less attention than fellow Flyers center prospect Jack Berglund. However, they have similar styles of play and attributes. As with many recent Philly picks, Ruohonen is a big two-way forward with solid two-way awareness. He is actually a better natural skater than Berglund. Ruohonen’s offensive ceiling may be a tad lower, but h’s shown the ability to put up points at lower levels, too, including the World Junior Championship.
Ruohonen has a decent tool set. However, he’s unlikely to become a game breaker at the professional level. He’s OK as a puck-handler but is mainly a north-south type. He’s not someone who often dekes around defenders or highlight-reel plays. Conversely, he is good at the little battles and knows how to use his size to get to the net. Ruohonen presently projects as a third or fourth center but a solid one.
He will return to Harvard in 2026-27 for his sophomore season. Ruohonen’s presence the Flyers organization depth chart opens some long-term possibilities. He could eventually slot in an NHL bottom six — it’s a realistic ceiling for him — or he could be a trading piece in a package deal somewhere. Big centers like him carry value to many organizations.
Flyers Warriors Annual Raffle
Every year, the Flyers Warriors hold a late summer raffle to raise money for the program and its various activities. The Flyers organization itself always donates most of the prizes. Contact the Flyers Warriors or any of their members — everyone has raffle tickets available — to purchase. The official website is here.
The official drawing is on September 28.
Phans of Philly: Road Trip Planning
Last season, the Flyers went a perfect 6-0-0 in road trip games organized by Phans of Philly. Large contingents of Flyers faithful traveled together to see the team sweep its California trip. The Flyers also earned wins in New Jersey, Detroit and Pittsburgh (Game One of the Eastern Conference Quarterfinal). This season, Phans of Philly planned two road trips involving flights and hotel stays. There will also be a couple bus trips in the works (TBA). The main attractions this season are:
In November, Phans of Philly will take a group of Flyers fans north of the border to see the team play the Ottawa Senators (Nov. 19) and Montreal Canadiens (November 21). This four-night trip is a Phans of Philly exclusive.
Come March, Phans has a five-night trip to see the Flyers play the defending Western Conference champion Vegas Golden Knights (March 11) and the Utah Mammoth (March 13). Fans will also have the option to add the March 9 game in Denver against the Avalanche ahead of the Vegas and Utah games.
When Phans of Philly announces its fan bus trip game schedule, Hot Stove will run a random drawing for two seats. Stay tuned.
Guffaw Cigars
Five-time NHL All-Star and Flyers Hall of Fame inductee Brian Propp introduced his own line of top-quality hand-crafted Dominican cigars . The Guffaw Cigar collection is highly rated for its balanced boldness, sophistication and premium-aged tobacco. Brian himself is a longtime cigar aficionado. He wanted his signature line to reflect the qualities he values in a cigar.
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