Flyers sign Jett Luchanko to three-year entry-level contract

The final buzzer had not sounded that long ago at the end of the Flyers development camp scrimmage and the equipment was barely hung up in the locker room. The spectators were still filtering out of the Flyers Training Center.

Before they got into their cars and started their engines, Jett Luchanko officially became a Flyer. The center forward, who was selected 13th overall at the 2024 NHL draft, inked a three-year entry-level deal Saturday night.

“Feels amazing. Obviously, a great organization,” Luchanko said. “I’m happy to be locked in here and have them behind [me] the whole way.”

According to CapFriendly, the deal’s maximum is an annual average value of $4.475 million; a total salary or salary-cap hit of $975,000, which includes a signing bonus of $97,500, and a maximum performance bonus of $3.5 million.

Luchanko, who doesn’t turn 18 until Aug. 21, notched 20 goals and 74 points in 68 regular-season games this past season with Guelph of the Ontario Hockey League. London teammates Oliver Bonk and Denver Barkey played against him often in the OHL. Bonk called Luchanko a “one-man power-play break-in” where the Storm would “just slung it back to him, one-against-four, and he’d skate it in every time.” Barkey left the ice continually impressed by his fellow teenager.

“He’s unreal. He kind of came in this year and he really worked his way up. I’d say he was a riser throughout the whole year. Really impressive,” Barkey said. “[Guelph’s] break out on the power play was legit, just drop it to him and [they] would find a way to get it in. He’s a really special player. He seems like a great kid, really hardworking. He’s got a lot of talent as well. So he’s got a bright future.”

» READ MORE: Flyers prospects Oliver Bonk and Denver Barkey have become ‘brothers and really close friends’

Listed at 6-foot, 188 pounds, Luchanko won gold with Canada at the 2024 U18 World Junior Championship, when he posted two goals and seven points in seven games. He also impressed at development camp, showcasing the speed and footwork that saw him move up the draft boards.

“The more you get to know him, the drive that he has, he’s kind of got a quiet intensity about him,” said assistant general manager Brent Flahr. “This is summer hockey, but I think you saw in small amounts his details to his game, the speed, and the skill that he has. Just a very mature game for a young player.

“A guy that just skyrocketed up the rankings in the second half of the year. Anybody that’s ever coached him or has been around him just raved about his approach to the game, and how he handles himself on and off the ice, and I think that lends well to a dramatic improvement here going forward.”