By Kevin Durso, Sports Talk Philly editor 
The Flyers and their fans were in for quite the surprise when the team received the second overall pick in the NHL Draft this June. The unexpected draw lands the Flyers a top-notch center and one of the leading prospects in the draft class.
Over the next few weeks leading up to the draft, you’ll see a lot of people take sides on which of the two they hope is left standing when the Flyers select. Regardless of who that player is, the Flyers are in position to have their short-term and long-term future change.
Here’s the impact from both sides.
In the short term, the Flyers get an instant top prospect. This will be the player that defines the pipeline until he debuts, whether that is in October or another season in the not so distant future.
The key to the short-term effect is partially the player. If it’s Nolan Patrick, the Flyers face the same decision they did with Ivan Provorov and Travis Konecny last season, he either makes the team out of camp or has to be returned to his junior team in Brandon. If it’s Nico Hischier, the Flyers have more options, either the NHL, another year with his junior team in Halifax, or be sent to the AHL to start his professional.
For Patrick, the belief is that another year in juniors is not of help to him and he is NHL ready. For Hischier, still relatively new to the North American game despite a tremendous rookie season in the QMJHL, a year back in juniors or the minors could be beneficial, though he also is close to if not already NHL ready.
If the short-term answer is that Patrick and Hischier are both NHL ready, and therefore one will be in Orange and Black to start the 2017-18 season, that player essentially instantly vaults into the third line spot. The short-term solution for the Flyers with that scenario is that it essentially puts a lot of roster discussion to bed, assuming Oskar Lindblom makes the Flyers out of camp as well. If that’s the case, two new forwards join the group of 12, alongside Claude Giroux, Jake Voracek, Wayne Simmonds, Brayden Schenn, Sean Couturier, Valtteri Filppula and Konecny, among others under contract and pending free agents.
Aside from that, nothing really happens in the short term. Either the prospect doesn’t make the roster and goes back to juniors or the minors — depending on the situation — or makes the team and likely slots in as a mid-line center and forward on the second power-play unit to start.
That’s where the long-term plan for this pick comes in. Patrick and Hischier are not generational talents like Connor McDavid, Jack Eichel, Auston Matthews and Patrik Laine are from years past, but they are high-quality prospects with All-Star potential. Each is projected to be a top-line center in the NHL.
With that in mind, understand that by having the second overall pick miraculously placed in their laps, the Flyers are going to add a player that isn’t just going to help the offense in the short term, they are finding a successor.
This player is going to be Claude Giroux’s replacement.
In saying that, this doesn’t mean Giroux has to be on his way out the door for anything to happen. The Flyers have acknowledged their commitment to the captain already with a long-term deal.
But Giroux is 29. Eventually, he won’t be a first-line center anymore. He won’t be the go-to guy on the top power-play unit. As with any player, age and decline can start to reduce a role. It may not happen in the first few seasons of this pick’s career, but it eventually will.
What the Flyers got with this pick was the ability to not leave anything to the imagination. There is no time that will come when the Flyers need to find a stud center who is capable of leading the offense at the top. They are getting it now with the help of lottery luck. It’s either going to be Nolan Patrick or Nico Hischier and that will be the face of the franchise at some point in the future. Simple as that.
While the long-term implications will impact Giroux and his role with the team, it can only help Giroux in the short term. Having another player that draws in such attention is sure to open up time and space for others on the ice, Giroux included. It’s an instant upgrade to the Flyers lineup.
In the short term, the Flyers get an upgrade with a player who could slot in as early as October and should make an impact from the start. In the long term, they don’t just get another first-round pick. They get a future star in the NHL, one that will also become the face of their franchise.
Not bad for a lotto ball.
