Jack Nesbitt is about to pick up another useful lesson on his path toward the NHL, and this one comes from a familiar kind of center. The Philadelphia Flyers’ top prospect has already chosen the college route for his development, and now he’ll get another layer of guidance with Canada at the 2027 World Junior Championships.
Nesbitt, 19, has quietly worked his way into the mix for Canada’s World Juniors roster. The 2025 No. 12 overall pick is trying to carve out a place on a deep Canadian team loaded with dynamic talent, even though that’s not really the lane he travels in.
At 6-foot-5, he’ll keep building his frame and spending time in the gym when he arrives at the University of Michigan for his freshman season in the fall. But the learning won’t stop there. He’ll be soaking up instruction on the ice too.
That’s where Ryan Getzlaf comes in.
The former Anaheim Ducks star has been added to Canada’s coaching staff and will work directly with Nesbitt and the other young centers. Getzlaf brings a résumé that includes four gold medals, two of them at the Olympics, plus a Stanley Cup championship.
Now 41, Getzlaf has been away from playing for four seasons. He last appeared for the Ducks in the 2021-22 season, then moved into a series of advisory and development roles.
In 2023-24, he served as a development coach and player coordinator for Anaheim. He then worked as a senior advisor and player relations advisor for Canada during the 2024-25 and 2025-26 seasons for the 4-Nations Faceoff, Men’s World Championships, and Olympics.
This time around, Getzlaf is back on the ice as an assistant coach for Canada’s U20 World Juniors team, and he’s already thinking in detail about how to handle the centers in his group.
"I'm watching video on all of them. I'm learning them, learning their tendencies and stuff too.
We'll work through it all the way through December and into the tournament. But it's a matter of being prepared for what you're doing.
Each guy's going to need something a little bit different. Some guys are stronger in one thing than others," Getzlaf remarked to NHL.com's Adam Kimelman regarding faceoff work.
For the Flyers, that’s an ideal setup. Nesbitt has the size and style to fit the mold of the kind of center Getzlaf was in his NHL days, even if he still has ground to cover before he reaches that level of physical maturity.
The similarities are clear: a big, powerful center who can be tough, reliable defensively, and use his size and passing touch to help teammates in the offensive zone. Nesbitt still needs to improve his skating and add muscle, but the foundation is there.
He’s already flashed enough to earn Player of the Game honors at the Summer Showcase, even in a 7-2 loss to the United States in which he didn’t record a point.
Nesbitt may never fully match the expectations attached to his draft position, but the value of his game is obvious. And with Getzlaf working beside him over the next few months, the Flyers prospect is set to get a crash course from one of the best in the business.
In Other News...
Flyers Prospect Jack Murtagh Still Leaves One Big Question
Jack Murtaghs first season at Boston University gave the Flyers a useful starting point, but not much in the way of clarity. The 2025 second-round pick finished with 6 goals and 5 assists in 35 games, a modest line that also reflected a BU team that struggled to produce offense across the board. For Philadelphia, the season was less about big numbers and more about getting a first look at how the young forward handles college hockey and the pace that comes with it.
The bigger issue is still the same one the Flyers and outside evaluators have had since draft day: what kind of player Murtagh ultimately becomes. His value lies in projection right now, because his freshman year showed development without fully defining his game. Even with a season in the books, he remains a prospect whose long-term role and ceiling are still very much open to interpretation. [Read more 🡒]
Flyers Young Forwards Are Starting To Look Like Real NHL Pieces
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Barkey appears headed for a bottom-six spot, where the Flyers would be hoping his puck skills translate into a steadier point total as he settles in. Bump, meanwhile, has the kind of upside that can change the feel of a young forward group quickly, with a breakout season and power-play time both in play if his development keeps moving the right way. For a team still building toward a clearer identity, the possibility that these two are becoming real NHL pieces matters just as much as any single training camp battle. [Read more 🡒]
Flyers Just Sent A Clear Message About Their Direction
The Flyers spent the summer making their intentions plain, locking in three players who figure to sit near the center of the franchises next phase. Trevor Zegras, Dan Vladar and Jamie Drysdale all landed long-term extensions, a sign the front office is not interested in treating this as another short-term reset. Instead, Philadelphia is betting on stability and continuity as it tries to turn its young core into something more durable.
Zegras four-year deal, Vladars five-year extension and Drysdales new long-term contract give the Flyers a clearer picture of what the roster is supposed to look like moving forward. Moves like these do not solve everything on their own, but they do show a team trying to define its direction and commit to it, rather than leave its future to another round of constant change. [Read more 🡒]