Tomorrow on August 15, fifteen college players’ NHL rights are set to expire and they will become free agents if not signed. Of those players, they are some pretty interesting names. Those names include the Philadelphia Flyers’ 19th overall pick in 2018—Jay O’Brien, a pair of second-round picks in Jonny Tychonick and Robert Mastrosimone, two third-rounders in Jake Wise and John Farinacci, and as well Flames prospect Demetrios Koumontzis. Even with a prospect of their own, the most intriguing name for the Flames should be John Farinacci.
Who is John Farinacci?
| Player | Position | Handedness | Height | Weight |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| John Farinacci | C | Right | 6’0″ | 190lbs |
Farinacci started his playing career in his home state of New Jersey and slowly made his way up. He played a year of 16U AAA, scoring over a point per game and then joined USHS prep league, getting a few games in the USHL for the junior USNTDP team and the Muskegon Lumberjacks. The following season was his draft year and he had similar path to the previous season.
This year in the USHS, he scored over two points per game and while he still played in the USHL for a few games, he also spent some time playing 18U AAA. His solid season got him drafted by the Arizona Coyotes in the third round of the 2019 NHL Draft.
After being drafted, Farinacci committed to Harvard University. He had a pretty good freshman season, scoring 10 goals and 12 assists for 22 points. The next season, Farinacci did not go to Harvard and played a total of 14 games shared between the USHL’s Muskegon Lumberjacks and the USA’s World Juniors team. He had eight points in his seven USHL games—four goals and four assists. Farinacci’s World Juniors campaign was very successful, his five goals was enough for fourth in the stat and his seven points put him twelfth in tournament scoring. Him and the USA claimed gold beating Canada in the gold medal game.
After a weird season, Farinacci rejoined Harvard’s hockey team. He had a solid season once again with 10 goals and 19 points in 29 games. Him and the Harvard team were named the champions of the 2022 ECAC Tournament after beating the Quinnipac Bobcats 3–2 in overtime. This past season, Farinacci was named captain and had his best year yet putting up over a point per game with 20 points in 19 games.
The best parts of Farinacci’s game includes his shot, two-way skill, and leadership abilities.
Connections to a Flames top prospect
One of the main things about Farinacci that should draw the Flames towards him is his connection their top prospect, Matt Coronato. Coronato and Farinacci apparently played for the New Jersey Colonials together when they were kids. One thing for certain is that the two have been teammates with Harvard for the past two seasons and have won trophies together. Their time with each other has made them best friends and that could easily make the Flames and Farinacci have mutual interest in one another.
Final thoughts
John Farinacci is likely the best college player that’s about to hit the open market which will garner him a tonne of interest throughout the NHL. His shot and goal scoring ability paired in with his two-way ability makes him have potential to be a solid player at the top level one day. For the Flames, Farinacci could boost a centre prospect pool that isn’t the strongest after Connor Zary and there also isn’t anything wrong with pleasing one of your best prospects by signing his best friend.
