The Philadelphia Flyers have selected left-handed defenseman Oliver Bonk with the No. 22 pick in the 2023 NHL Draft.
Bonk comes from NHL bloodlines and plays for the London Knights, a veritable factory for future NHL stars. He improved significantly as his draft year wore on, emerging as one of London’s top players during their run to the OHL championship series against the Peterborough Petes.
The 6-foot-1 defenseman scored 10 goals and 40 points in 67 games with London during the 2022–23 OHL season, finishing eighth in team scoring and second to Montreal Canadiens prospect Logan Mailloux in points by a Knights defender. He added 11 assists in 21 OHL playoff games.
Bonk is the latest addition to a Flyers prospect pool that also includes Matvei Michkov and Cutter Gauthier (to name a couple of players). The Flyers used their 2022 first-round selection on Gauthier.
Philadelphia previously selected Michkov in the first round of the 2023 NHL Draft. Barring any additional moves, the Flyers will not be back on the clock until the No. 87 pick in the third round.
Daily Faceoff‘s Steven Ellis ranked Bonk as the No. 31 prospect available in this year’s draft. Here’s what he had to say about Bonk in his final 2023 NHL Draft Rankings:
“The son of former NHLer Radek Bonk, Oliver played a ton of minutes this year thanks to his strong own-zone play. He’s capable of creating damage in the O-zone, too. He fits the mold of a modern-day defender who can do some of everything.”
The Flyers finished the 2022–23 regular season with a 31-38-13 record and 75 points in 82 games, enough to finish seventh in the Metro Division and 26th in the league. They ultimately missed the playoffs for a third consecutive season.
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