Porter Martone will be playing college hockey at Michigan State.
The Flyers' sixth overall pick in the NHL Draft from last month has committed to the university, which will lead him to continue his development among the NCAA ranks.
Martone's commitment was first reported by Sportsnet insider Elliotte Friedman and followed up on by PHLY's Charlie O'Connor, who added that Martone made the decision after talking it through with the Flyers.
A big right wing prospect with slick hands and a powerful shot, Martone's skill set impressed at Flyers development camp in Voorhees earlier this month, and he said during it that his goal was to make the NHL roster out of training camp later in the summer.
The 18-year-old's declaration, however, was made in response to a question from a reporter about whether he considered returning to his Canadian junior team in Brampton or making the jump into college and the NCAA to continue his development.
A few days later, after the development camp's 5-on-5 prospect scrimmage, Flyers assistant general manager Brent Flahr said that Martone did have college offers on the table and that the organization would be talking with him, his family, and his agent within the next few weeks to determine the best path forward.
That path looks to be in East Lansing, where Martone will get to face older, stronger, and faster competition, which in turn, should push him to get stronger and faster, too, as he progresses into the Flyers' NHL picture.
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Martone's commitment to Michigan State furthers a continued shift in the amateur hockey landscape. Earlier in the month, 17-year-old Gavin McKenna, the consensus No. 1 pick for the 2026 NHL Draft, announced he was leaving his Canadian junior team in Medicine Hat to play in college for Penn State, and with NCAA programs now able to offer NIL money and the building perception of facing better competition, college is rapidly becoming the more favorable development route.
Martone's joining the Spartans will also put him alongside second-round pick Shane Vansaghi, who is another skilled and sizable wing prospect already with the team and heading toward his sophomore year. The two together are likely to result in Michigan State having an influx of Flyers fans tuning in to watch over the coming season.
Martone has not signed his entry-level contract with the Flyers yet. Undoubtedly, that will cause some uneasiness among fans because of the fallout from former 2022 first-round pick Cutter Gauthier's trade out of the organization in January 2024. However, there have been no signs of any similar sort of rift between Martone and the Flyers.
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