NCAA Hockey: Frozen Four-Boston College vs Union

Boston College goalie Thatcher Demko is a lock to the top goalie selected in this weekend's NHL draft.

(Eric Hartline/USA Today Sports)

VOORHEES – Flyers general manager Ron Hextall was asked Tuesday what he feels is the most valuable commodity at NHL drafts.

“Because of my background I tend to go with …”

The former goalie stopped in mid-sentence when a room full of media broke into a laugh.

“No,” Hextall continued. “You guys haven’t heard the end. I'd go with a defenseman.”

Interesting.

But for this weekend’s draft, which will be held in Philadelphia, there are a lot more forward prospects projected to go in the first round.

So when the Flyers pick 17th overall Friday night at Wells Fargo Center, Hextall will be on stage possibly announcing he's taking two-way center Dylan Larkin … or high-scoring left wing Sonny Milano … or 6-foot-4 power forward Alex Tuch … or Swedish right wing Adrian Kempe or …

Would Hextall dare use his first pick since being promoted to GM last month on Thatcher Demko, the one goalie who is projected to be a first-round pick?

"I would draft a goalie in the first round,” Hextall said. “I wouldn't hesitate. It would have to be the right one, and if he’s lumped in with a bunch of players you've got to separate 'em. But I wouldn't hesitant to draft a goalie in the first round."

So what’s he think of Demko, a 6-foot-3, 18-year-old from San Diego who led Boston College to the Frozen Four this year as a freshman?

“Well, I’m not gonna play my cards on the table,” Hextall said.

Demko excelled this season as the youngest player in NCAA hockey, as he built a 16-5-3 record with a 2.24 goals-against average and .919 save percentage in 24 games for BC, which lost its Frozen Four semifinal game at Wells Fargo Center to eventual champion Union College, which was led by Flyers defenseman prospect Shayne Gostisbehere.

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Here's a scouting report on Demko from TSN Director of Scouting Craig Button: "A big man with excellent athletic skills and a burning competitive fire. Works to be better and his attention to detail and improving in all aspects makes him a top goaltending prospect who can realize his vast potential."

Button's assessment reads like a description of Hextall when he was starting for the Flyers in the 1980s and '90s after being a 1982 sixth-round pick.

Hextall knows that some NHL GMs are afraid to take a goalie in the first round.

The Flyers have drafted 58 goalies since joining the league in 1967-68, but just two in the first round: Brian Boucher, 22nd overall in 1995, and Maxime Ouellet, 22nd overall in 1999.

Boucher had his moments during a 14-season NHL career from 1999-2013, much of it during three tours with the Flyers, but he never became a star. Quellet was a bust as he played just 12 NHL games, two as a Flyer.

Hextall, in fact, was the last goalie the Flyers drafted who went onto have a nice NHL career. Before him, the only others were Pete Peeters (1977, 8th round) and Pelle Lindbergh (1979, 2nd round) and Roman Cechmanek (2000, 6th round).

Hextall thinks some but not all organizations now are more willing to draft a goalie in the first round than they were during his playing days.

“Grant Fuhr comes to mind," Hextall said. "There were other guys, but there weren’t a ton. There's more now, but teams are still hesitant for the obvious reasons: Because there’s a lot of mental stuff with a goalie that he's got to overcome.

“So teams I think are a little bit reluctant for the most part, but if you hit on one, you’re set for 10 or 15 years. So there’s a risk-reward there.”

Goalie is the one position that the Flyers have had all kinds of issues with in recent years, but management is happy with current starter Steve Mason, who has been very good since arriving in an April 2013 trade from Columbus.

At 26, Mason could be the Flyers’ goalie for many years to come. Or he could lose it like many goalies do … like he did for almost four full seasons after his great rookie campaign for Columbus.

Down the road, the Flyers are optimistic that 2012 second-round pick Anthony Stolarz develops into an NHL goalie. The 6-foot-6 native of Jackson, N.J. is still raw, but made big strides during a very strong 2013-14 season of juniors playing in the OHL for the London Knights.

“You look at the history of drafting goalies and, believe me, it's the hardest position to draft,” Hextall said. “We can all see the skills, but the mental part, that’s the part you’ve got to try to figure out.

"So talking to people, watching a guy that makes big saves in the last few minutes of a game, he doesn’t come unglued when the goalie’s pulled and they’ve got a one-goal lead ... There's a lot of little things that I've talked to our scouts about. I think there’s little things that I can add.

“It’s hard, but I will tell you I won’t shy away from a goalie. But also I’m not going to draft a goalie for the sake of drafting a goalie."