The 2025 IIHF World Junior Ice Hockey Championships are drawing near, and the Philadelphia Flyers will have five players representing their countries:
- Carson Bjarnason, G, Canada
- Jett Luchanko, C/RW, Canada
- Oliver Bonk, D, Canada
- Jack Berglund, C/LW, Sweeden
- Heikki Ruohonen, C, Finland
The Flyers will have three organization representatives playing for Team Canada in the 2025 World Juniors.
Jett Luchanko, Oliver Bonk, and Carson Bjarnason made the Canadien team, while Denver Barkey was invited to camp but did not crack the final roster.
Luchanko started the season in the NHL with the Flyers before eventually being sent back to his OHL team, Guelph Storm. Since rejoining the Storm, Luchanko has been playing great hockey.
Luchanko in 16 games with Guelph: 7 G / 13 A / 20 P / 52.6 FO% / 1.25 PPG
He continues improving his game and earned a role with Canada in the WJC.
Oliver Bonk is one of two Flyers’ prospects on the London Knights, along with their Captain, Denver Barkey. While Barkey fell short of Team Canada again, Oliver Bonk will get his second shot at the World Juniors.
The right-shot defenseman is playing just under a point-per-game pace, tallying 21 points in 24 games. Bonk will have a legitimate chance to solidify his stance as one of the Flyers’ premier defensive prospects.
The last Flyer representing Canada in the WJC is goalie Carson Bjarnason of the Brandon Wheat Kings(WHL). Bjaranason is an intriguing prospect. The goaltending situation in Philly is still relatively filled with possibility and potential. Sam Ersson is just 25, Aleksei Kolosov is only 22, and the seemingly odd-man-out in Philly, Ivan Fedotov, is 28. Along with Bjarnason, the Flyers also have 19-year-old Yegor Zavragin playing for Matvei Michkov’s former club, SKA Saint Petersburg.
Moral of the story? The Flyers have lots of youth and skill at the goaltending position. Bjarnason can make a name for himself on the national stage.
Bjarnason has appeared in 16 games, has an 8-6 record, a .913 save percentage, and one shutout.
Jack Berglund was the Flyers’ second-round selection in the 2024 NHL Draft; he currently plays for Karlskoga in the Sweedish Hockey Allsvenskan after being loaned by Farjestad BK in the SHL.
He will be an interesting player to watch during the World Junior Championship, which is a chance to watch a Flyers center prospect play against the most talented prospects in the world.
Berglund is a 6 foot 4 centerman, and if he could pan out, he would be just what the Flyers are looking for. He has the size and plays a physical brand of hockey.
Before being loaned out, Berglund only produced 3 points (1G, 2A) in 17 games. He only played in two games before WJC camp began, so this will be the best look we get of Berglund for a little while.
The last Flyer prospect in the World Junior Championship is Heikki Ruohonen, a Harvard Hockey commit (26-27 ETA) and a member of the Dubuque Fighting Saints of the USHL.
In 19 games with Dubuque, Ruohonen tallied 5 five goals and 7 seven assists (12 total points). Similarly to Berglund, this will be the first real action many Flyer faithful get to see from Ruohonen since it will take place nationally.
The 2025 IIHF World Junior Ice Hockey Championships will occur from December 26th, 2024, through January 5th, 2025, in Ottowa, Ontario, Canada.
