Flyers Draft Goalies On Two Consecutive Picks; Select Center In Third Round

The Philadelphia Flyers traded for a second-round pick and selected goaltender Carson Bjarnason at the NHL Draft on Thursday.

The pick was the 51st overall and the trade was with the Blackhawks. The Flyers traded their sixth-round pick this year (167th overall) and a 2024 second-round pick to Chicago.

Bjarnason is the top-ranked North American goalie by NHL.com and the top-ranked North American goalie by NHL Central Scouting.

Bjarnason played for the Brandon Wheat Kings in the Western Hockey League. He will turn 18 tomorrow. He is 6-foot-3, 190 pounds, and from Carberry, Manitoba.

Bjarnason was 21-19-6 with a 3.51 goals-against average. He played for Canada in the U-18 World Championships and had a 3.51 goals-against average .849 save percentage in six games as Canada won a bronze medal.

Then, maybe in a surprise, the Flyers used their first third-round pick (87th overall) to take another goalie, Russian Ejor Zavragin. He is 17 years old, 6-foot-2, 193 pounds. He played 21 games for Mamonty Yugry in a Russia junior league.

Flyers assistant general manager Brent Flahr said at a pre-draft news conference last week the team was likely to draft a goalie.

“It’s a pretty good goalie draft,” Flahr said.

“There is depth at the goaltending position. I think you’ll see as soon as the first one goes, there is going to be a string of them go.

“There is some depth in that position, and typically we’ve always tried to take a goalie. Now if they all go, then you’re not just drafting a goalie to draft a goalie, but there is some depth, so I would assume at some point we would have a chance to get one.”

The Flyers used their second third-round pick (95th overall) to draft center Denver Barkey from the London Knights, of the Ontario Hockey League.

Barkey is 5-9, 154 pounds, a left-handed shooter from Newmarket, Ontario.

From Elite Prospects: “Barkey understands how to make plays as a passer. He attracts defenders to create space for teammates, constantly uses them to progress the attack, and layers feints in his stickhandling. His quick give-and-goes only add more pace to his play. And he also knows where and how to position himself to get the puck back in dangerous spots.”