Flahr: Bonk Has Only "Scratched the Surface"

The 2023 NHL Entry Draft has carried the label of being extremely deep on talented forwards but relatively shallow in defensemen who are currently on a trajectory to become bankable NHL defensemen at their upside floors. London Knights blueliner Oliver Bonk was one of the safer picks in this year's defenseman talent pool.

Playing for Dale Hunter's Knights, Bonk made significant progress in 2022-23 after a tough time at the 2022 Hlinka Gretzky Cup tournament. The Canadian-born son of Czech former NHL center Radek Bonk, the younger Bonk is a new has been on the 2023 Draft radar since playing AAA minor hockey in Ottawa.

This season, in his first full OHL campaign, Oliver Bonk advanced to the point of being considered a candidate for latter first-round to early/mid second round Draft selection. Projections for his NHL ceiling varied from scouting source to scouting source -- with the rough national pundit consensus being the 4th or 5th slot on an eventual NHL depth chart, the Flyers' internal consensus being in the middle-pair (No. 3 or No. 4) --- and outlying critiques still placing him as a potential top six.

Flyers assistant general manager Brent Flahr believes that Bonk, who shoots right handed, stands 6-foot-1 1/2 and currently weighs 180 pounds, has the chance to become a reliable NHL player with the puck on his stick. He had solid underlying puck possession numbers during the 2022-23 season. As a defender, Bonk has NHL penalty killing potential.

"Oliver's a defenseman that we are very high on. He is a coveted right-shot defenseman. Very cerebral. Excellent puck mover. Solid defender. Just steadily improved throughout the season. He's a good-sized kid, but he is just growing into his body. We feel he is just scratching the surface at this point. G's very aware of what he is, what he is good at and what he needs to work at. We are just excited to get him," Flahr said after the Flyers selected Bonk with the 22nd overall pick of the first round.

The Recrutes Draft Guide, compiled by former Montreal Canadiens amateur scout with input from veteran NHL scouts, rated Bonk's skating as an 8 on the standard 1-to-9 scale. That's above-average (6 is the "concern" range, 7 is average but not a concern, 8 is solid but not elite, and 9 is outstanding). Some independent sources have deemed Bonk's skating an issue, but that does not seem to be the case when NHL-employed scouts and scouting directors weighed in. Bob McKenzie, for example, had Bonk ranked 28th overall and The Hockey News had the player at 23rd.

The main question mark with Bonk is whether he tops out as a defensive defenseman or if his nascent puck skills (rated in the average-for-NHL track at a 7 score by McCagg's Recrutes) emerge appreciably.

From an offensive standpoint, Bonk started the 2023-season with 10 goals in his first 47 games -- which was a bit unexpected -- but then went goalless in his final 43 games including the OHL playoffs. It should be noted, however, that Montreal Canadiens defense prospect Logan Mailloux was delegated the lion's share of offensive responsibilities for London.

"He's like a young Marc Staal type," said an NHL scout to Recrutes. "Maybe not a lot of offense but there's some there. I think he can be a penalty killer, and he could be in a top-four role."

With more offensive-minded defense prospects in the Flyers farm system such as Emil Andrae and Ronnie Attard, the organization does not necessarily need offense from Bonk. They need a reliable two-way defender who can guard the house and get the puck out of the D zone consistently.

For his part, Bonk is thrilled to join his dad (whom the Ottawa Senators selected with the third overall pick of the 2004 Entry Draft and went on to play 969 NHL games as a two-way center) among the relatively sparse ranks of father-son combos to be chosen in the first round of the NHL Draft.

"It feels great," Bonk said.. A dream come true. I don't even remember walking down the stairs [to go to the stage]."

After the Flyers swung for the fences with picking the electrifying Matvei Mickhov with the seventh pick of the some round, some thought Philly might take another home run swing at 22 with offensive- minded but undersized Avangard Omsk defenseman Mikhail Gulayev (a dazzling skater with high-end puck skills) still on the board. The Flyers opted instead to go with a defenseman who is a little more of a sure thing to project at present.