Draft Update: Will Smith & Oliver Moore continue to impress; Bodes well for Philadelphia’s draft

Oliver Moore, who is considered by many to be a top-10 pick in this upcoming draft, had himself another very good game in the U18 tournament today vs Finland.

U18 Scoring Leaders:

  1. Gabe Perreault (2023): 4G-7A-11P in 3 games
  2. Will Smith (2023): 4G-7A-11P in 3 games
  3. Ryan Leonard (2023): 3G-5A-8P in 3 games
  4. Cole Eiserman (2024): 6G-1A-7P in 3 games
  5. Otto Stenberg (2023): 3G-4A-7P in 3 games
  6. Axel Sandin-Pellikka (2023): 2G-4A-6P in 3 games
  7. Oliver Moore (2023): 3G-2A-5P in 3 games

He started off by jumping on a loose puck and potting the semi-breakaway after a terrific play by Ryan Fine off the wall.

Shows off his soft hands in tight.

Moore is a very fun player to watch. His motor is relentless. He is such an effortless skater, it seems like he’s not even moving that fast at times.

Will Smith, another USDP player in this draft, continued to show off his immense skill level with a very impressive assist to Minnetian in the 1st period to make it 2-0 USA.

If you haven’t been watching the U18’s, most of these games have been blowouts. USA’s last game vs Norway was something straight out of a beer-league match. Just wasn’t really hockey. Skill-level was just way too flop-sided.

Still, it’s still nice to see them put up the points they did.

To add to that beautiful assist, Smith had one of the most impressive goals that I’ve ever seen. The hands, the deception, the strength to go through defenders with ease. What an incredible play from Smith.

Per Scott Wheeler, Smith passed Auston Matthews for the second-most points in a single season in NTDP history with his performace today vs Finland.

Gabe Perreault, who broke Auston Matthews’ all-time single-season scoring record on Saturday night, had himself another stellar game today. Perreault finished with 4 points (1G-3A) and I often caught myself asking how a kid who is breaking Auston Matthews’ records isn’t higher on draft boards.

After initial research, it seems like the main knock on him is his skating. Cam Robinson explained it as such:

If Briere could find a way to get another 1st round pick this year, Gabe Perreault is a guy you need to target if he’s there.

Why this is good for Philadelphia:

Oliver Moore, Will Smith, Gabe Perreault, Axel Sandin-Pelikka, and Ryan Leonard improving their draft stocks in these U18s is nothing but good news for the Flyers. 

If an NHL team falls in love with one of Smith, Moore, or Leonard, they could easily be nabbed before the Flyers pick at 7.

Smith almost certainly looks like a top-5 pick now, so where could that potentially leave the Flyers? 

  1. Bedard 
  2. Fantilli 
  3. Smith/Michkov
  4. Michkov/Smith
  5. Carlsson 
  6. Benson

This would then leave the Flyers with the option of drafting Oliver Moore, Ryan Leonard, or Dailbor Dvorsky. 

This is without mentioning the possibility that a team before the Flyers at 7 falls in love with Leonard. Let’s say, ARI nabs him 6th to go along with their smaller skilled youngsters in Cooley, Keller, and Hayton. 

  1. Bedard
  2. Fantilli
  3. Smith/Michkov
  4. Michkov/Smith
  5. Carlsson 
  6. Leonard

Leaves the Flyers in a position to pick from Zach Benson, Oliver Moore, Dailbor Dvorsky, or Eduard Sale. 

Hell, maybe a team goes defenseman top-6? Then things really get interesting.

Obviously, I could sit here all day long and write down possible outcomes of what could happen. Endlessly guessing at what NHL teams’ scout’s rank lists look like. But in the end, I don’t know what’s going to happen come draft day. But I do know these USDP kids rising their stocks, along with Sandin-Pellikka rising his, does nothing but help the Flyers land one of their future potential stars.

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Mandatory Credit: Johnny Ulecka

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