Timing could be everything for Penn State men’s hockey. Make your first Frozen Four in program history in the 2024-25 season, the final season before CHL players can make the transfer from juniors to the NCAA, and you might just become a hotbed for some of the top prospects in the game.
There may be none bigger than the prospect Penn State has just landed. Gavin McKenna, the projected first overall pick in the 2026 NHL Draft, officially committed to play at Penn State on Tuesday.
McKenna’s decision comes on the heels of several other notable names. Luke Misa, the brother of second overall pick in the 2025 NHL Draft Michael Misa, has already committed to Penn State. So has 14th overall pick Jackson Smith. Now, they get McKenna. And could a potential future Flyer be next?
Make no mistake about it after development camp this week, Porter Martone’s goal is to play in the NHL straight from his draft year. And there’s certainly a chance he could do that. But if he’s not wearing the Orange and Black, the NCAA may be his next stop.
There are reportedly many offers for Martone to come to college. It’s something the sixth overall pick is going to carefully consider. The problem in this is going to be the timing. If Martone determines college is his option, he is not eligible to sign an entry-level deal and make his bid to make an NHL roster at 18.
For now, that’s where Martone’s mind is. He wants to be an NHL player right away.
“My mindset is playing in the NHL next year,” Martone said. “If the management staff here thinks otherwise, that’s when you have the talk with my agent and me. My goal is to make the NHL and have a big summer, really gain some strength in the lower body and then come into camp and try to earn my spot. For me, I want to play a full regular season in the NHL next year.”
Prior to the start of development camp, GM Danny Briere mentioned Martone among possible replacement options for Tyson Foerster, who had an injury and subsequent infection at World Championships that could lead to him missing the start of the season.
“We have some young guys and maybe if he does have to miss time early in the season that they step up,” Briere said last Tuesday. “Maybe it’s an Alex Bump, maybe it’s a Porter Martone, or a [Devin] Kaplan, who played at the end of the year for us. There are other guys that perform that maybe they get a look early in the season if they have a good camp.”
“Martone’s obviously got all kinds of offers. He wants to play in the NHL. That’s a discussion we’ll have to have with his agent,” assistant GM Brent Flahr said on Sunday. “As much as we want him to play, we’ve got to make sure we do what’s best for him. We’ll figure that out here in the coming weeks and see what he wants to do and his family and go from there.”
Flahr referenced the battle that the Flyers face with players like Martone and adjusting to this new process within the junior and college ranks. He alluded to players that may have graduated from the junior level, but are still adjusting to the speed of the NHL. Martone certainly could qualify. The pace of the game at the next level is one thing that Flahr made note of following development camp.
“To see his maturity, the way he handles himself around the group, he’s a pretty comfortable kid,” Flahr said. “I think once he gets with NHL players, he’s going to stand out that much more. He’s always looking around, learning. I think the pace of his game is going to have to pick up. There’s a process. He’s a young guy, we’ve got to be patient, but we’ll see what he can do.”
Give Martone a shot to make the Flyers right away, or allow him to make the move to college and continue to improve his game. The Flyers still have some time to consider if their top pick in the 2025 NHL Draft has a true shot at the roster.
If he doesn’t, it’s safe to say the message between the lines is that Martone may be best suited for the NCAA. He’s been linked to Penn State already and there will certainly be other programs interested.
But the battle remains that Martone would have to forgo his opportunity to make the Flyers in 2025-26 if he were to choose the college route.
There are ways for Martone to play in both college and professional ranks next season. He could choose an NCAA program, play out the season, then sign with the Flyers upon its conclusion and either join the NHL or go to the AHL for a potential playoff run, the same direction as Kaplan, Bump, and Karsen Dorwart last season. Kaplan and Dorwart each made their NHL debut. Bump opted to go to the AHL for the rest of the season.
There is still time for that decision to be made, as Flahr indicated. But if college is calling for Martone, it wouldn’t be surprising if he’s coming to a rink just a few hours outside of Philadelphia. It could be the next addition for a Penn State program that is getting more and more talented by the day.