Fans of the Philadelphia Flyers are extremely high on 19-year-old forward Porter Martone, and for good reason. The Peterborough native and childhood Flyers fan made an immediate impact in the NHL following a stellar campaign at Michigan State University, and he\u2019s now being viewed as the crown jewel of the franchise\u2019s young core.<\/p>\n
The Athletic\u2019s Scott Wheeler also appears to be a major Martone believer.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Porter Martone praised as one of the best young players in the entire NHL<\/p>\n
In his summer ranking of the top 100 drafted prospects<\/a> in the NHL, Wheeler ranked Martone No. 3 on the list behind only the Toronto Maple Leafs\u2019 Gavin McKenna and the San Jose Sharks\u2019 Ivar Stenberg, who were selected first and second overall, respectively, in this summer\u2019s draft.<\/p>\n He\u2019s just one of four players grouped into Tier 1 of Wheeler\u2019s rankings.<\/p>\n Here\u2019s what Wheeler had to say about Martone:<\/p>\n Martone is a modern powered forward who blends size with skill, poise, physicality and scoring ability.<\/p>\n He has a pro build, battles for pucks when he\u2019s on them, goes to the net, finishes his checks and will drop the gloves. He handles the puck extremely smoothly for his size and can be quite noticeable in possession when he\u2019s playing with confidence and intention. I\u2019ve seen him make a ton of individual skill plays one-on-one, cleanly beat goalies from mid-range with his strong shot and release and execute low-to-high plays from below the goal line or off the cycle. He has a nifty toe-drag, both in release and one-on-one handles, and slick handles, regularly making individual skill plays on the puck. He has a deceptive release point and is an excellent passer.<\/p>\n There have been games in which I\u2019ve wanted to see him keep his feet moving and take over, and others where his discipline on the puck (in terms of play selection\/turning it over) and off it (bad penalties, losing his man to chase, not finding open space) have been an issue. His skating can kick out from the knees a little bit, too, and it will need to improve if he wants the rest of his game to really pop at the NHL level. But he has a lot of attributes: size, strength, power, shot, playmaking, puck skill. He\u2019s going to score goals, make plays and be able to impose himself in the NHL when he really comes into his own. He has the talent to become a high-end point-producing winger. The skill and hockey sense are real, and the consistency of his effort level and toughness have developed over time, too. He\u2019s one of the top forward prospects in the game.<\/p>\n I debated ranking him No. 2.<\/p>\n After the Flyers selected Martone with the No. 6 overall pick of the 2025 NHL Entry Draft, he spent his draft-plus-one season putting up massive numbers at Michigan State, posting 25 goals and 50 points in 35 games for the Spartans as a freshman. Despite suffering a heartbreaking loss to the Wisconsin Badgers in the NCAA Regional Final, Michigan State was unequivocally one of the best squads in all of college hockey in no small part due to the presence of Martone.<\/p>\n Martone immediately made the jump to the NHL after the conclusion of the Spartans\u2019 season and, appropriately, was the spark plug that powered the Flyers to a playoff berth. He logged four goals and 10 points in his first nine games as an NHLer, including an electrifying overtime winner against the Boston Bruins to mark his first NHL goal.<\/p>\n His strong production continued in the playoffs, especially in the Flyers\u2019 first-round series against the Pittsburgh Penguins. He scored massive goals in Games 1 and 2 of the series \u2014 both game-winners \u2014 and finished the playoffs tied for second on the Flyers with five points in the postseason.<\/p>\n With a full offseason to recharge, Martone is expected to take on a massive role as a rookie this coming season. He\u2019ll likely slot in as a top-six winger and earn significant usage on the power play. Martone is currently the odds-on favorite<\/a> to win the Calder Memorial Trophy as the NHL\u2019s top rookie.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Fans of the Philadelphia Flyers are extremely high on 19-year-old forward Porter Martone, and for good reason. 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