Porter Martone Could Have an Inside Track on the Calder

Some rookies arrive in the NHL and have to fight for a job. Then there are rookies who arrive and pretty quickly find themselves playing in the places where points are supposed to happen. That appears to be where Porter Martone is headed in Philadelphia.

The 19-year-old is expected to start the season on the Flyers' top line with Owen Tippett and Trevor Zegras. He's also been working with the No. 1 power-play unit during training camp. That's a pretty nice landing spot for a young player who already showed in a brief NHL audition last season that he wasn't overwhelmed by the league.

Martone Has Landed in a Pretty Good Spot.

Let's put the opportunity in perspective. Martone was the sixth overall pick in 2025, so expectations were already going to follow him around. But what he did in nine regular-season games last season was encouraging: four goals and 10 points, including four power-play points, along with 32 shots and a plus-4 rating.

Those are solid numbers, obviously. But nine games isn't much of a sample. Still, that's not really the point. The point is that Martone got a taste of the NHL and produced. Now Philadelphia appears ready to give him a much larger role.

A rookie can have plenty of talent and still struggle to put up numbers if he's playing 13 minutes a night on a third line and getting a look at the second power-play unit once in a while. Martone appears to be getting the opposite treatment. Top line. First power play. Skilled linemates. That's a pretty good recipe for success.

The Calder Race Could Come Down to Opportunity.

The Calder Trophy isn't simply about who has the most talent. Rookies who get the right combination of ice time, linemates, and special-teams opportunities can separate themselves pretty quickly. Martone seems to have all three working in his favour.

Playing with Zegras could be particularly interesting. If that line develops some chemistry, Martone should get plenty of opportunities around the net while Zegras creates plays. Add Tippett to the mix, and there should be enough offensive talent around him that opponents can't simply focus on the rookie.

And here's the bottom line. Sometimes the best thing that can happen to a young player is landing on a team that actually needs him.

The Flyers Are Giving Martone a Big Opportunity.

Philadelphia doesn't seem to be treating Martone like a prospect who needs protection from the NHL. They're putting him right into the middle of things.

That doesn't guarantee anything. Calder races have a funny way of developing, and a lot can change over an 82-game season. But if Martone stays healthy and that top-line, first-power-play role sticks, he has something every young player chasing that trophy needs: an opportunity.

And Martone has landed in Philadelphia with plenty of it.