In an NHL world where most draft picks outside of the very upper echelons are years away from contributing, there’s an old mantra that it usually makes sense to take the best player available.
After all, when you hold the 14th overall selection – as the Blue Jackets do when the 2026 NHL Draft begins tonight – you never know what your roster needs or prospect pool might look like when that player is ready.
But, there are always mitigating factors, CBJ general manager Don Waddell said Thursday.
“Our scouts are meeting as we speak, and I always tell them, do the order by the best players,” Waddell said. “Then when we get in the draft – and I’ve done it; I think this is my 22nd draft – you might get to our pick at 14 and it might not be the position that I’m thinking that we really need, and we really like the same player at a different position at 15.
“So certainly the list is built for a reason, but I can tell you in all my years, I don’t know if I’ve stuck or we’ve stuck as an organization to just next guy up gets selected.”
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With that in mind, would it make sense for the Blue Jackets to lean toward a forward over a defenseman when No. 14 comes up tonight? After all, in the last two drafts, Columbus has selected 12 players and just three of them are forwards, while seven line up on defense and two are goalies. In addition, just one of those three forwards was taken in the first four rounds – 2024's top pick, Cayden Lindstrom, who went fourth overall.
Nothing is set in stone until the names start coming off the board, but it does seem likely the Blue Jackets will lean toward adding to the firepower up front tonight – if the team still has its pick.
DRAFT RANKINGS: CBJ consensus poll | NHL Central Scouting rankings | Mock draft roundup
That feels more likely now that the Jackets traded three draft picks – including a 2026 second-rounder – for Colorado’s Valeri Nichushkin yesterday, giving Waddell the top-six addition he was looking for without having to give up the first-round selection. The CBJ GM had spoken previously about how he wouldn’t be against trading No. 14 if he could add to the current squad, and while he still could use it to make a further move, the Blue Jackets were able to add yesterday without dealing their top choice.
In all, after Thursday’s trade, the Blue Jackets hold six picks in the seven rounds, and director of amateur scouting Ville Siren and assistant director Trevor Timmins intend to make the most of them. Waddell said he has a working knowledge of the top 40 to 50 players on the team’s board, but as the draft gets deeper, it’s up to those experts to shine.
READ MORE: The experts’ takes | 5 things to know about the class
“These (scouts), with Trevor and Ville leading them, they’ve worked countless hours to prepare for this,” Waddell said. “You have to trust it. You have the people. When I came in here two years ago, everybody expected changes. I sat through these first few draft meetings before the draft and I saw how prepared this group was. I asked a lot of questions, and I always got the answers that made sense. So you want to be involved, but you also want to be careful not to dabble in the wrong places.”
Schedule of Events
The draft will kick off tonight at the KeyBank Center in Buffalo at 7 p.m. ET, with round one taking place this evening; rounds two through seven are tomorrow starting at 11 a.m. ET.
Friday night’s first round will be televised on ESPN and ESPN+, while the Blue Jackets 2026 NHL Draft Show will air live on 97.1 The Fan, BlueJackets.com, and the CBJ app starting at 7.
Saturday’s action can be viewed on NHL Network and ESPN+.
CBJ Picks
Here’s a look at the six choices Columbus owns in the draft after sending a second-round pick to Colorado on Thursday.
- First round: 14th overall
- Third round: 94th overall (from COL via MIN)
- Fourth round: 101st overall (from TOR via MIN)
- Fifth round: 142nd overall
- Sixth round: 182nd overall (from PIT)
- Seventh round: 206th overall
The Blue Jackets sent their original second-round pick to Montreal in 2024 in a deal that included Patrik Laine; the team then added another choice in that round from Pittsburgh in the December trade that featured Yegor Chinakhov, but that selection was dealt Thursday to Colorado in the Nichushkin trade.
The 94th and 101st overall selections were acquired in November 2024 in a deal that sent David Jiricek to the Wild; the Jackets’ original choice in the third round was sent to Vancouver in March in the Conor Garland trade, while the team’s original fourth-round pick was dealt to Detroit at last year’s draft in a pick swap.
The 182nd overall selection was acquired in February 2024 in a deal that sent Emil Bemstrom to the Penguins; the Jackets’ original choice in the sixth round was traded to Philadelphia in September for Ivan Fedotov.
Consensus Top Players
Each year, we compile a consensus poll of the top prospects in the draft, based on where notable analysts have ranked the best players available. You can see the whole list at the link above along with the players' accomplishments and statistics, but here's a quick look at the top players. (Heights and weights as well as positions are those measured at the NHL Scouting Combine or provided by NHL Central Scouting, should the player have not attended the combine.)
1. LW Gavin McKenna (5-11¼, 170), Penn State (NCAA)
2. LW Ivar Stenberg (5-11, 183), Frölunda HC (Sweden)
3. RHD Chase Reid (6-2½, 190), Soo (OHL)
4. C Caleb Malhotra (6-1¾, 185), Brantford (OHL)
5. LHD Carson Carels (6-1¾, 198), Prince George (WHL)
6. C Viggo Björck (5-9, 180), Djurgårdens IF (Sweden)
7. RHD Keaton Verhoeff (6-4, 215), North Dakota (NCAA)
8. LHD Alberts Šmits (6-2¾, 209), EHC München (Germany)
9. RHD Daxon Rudolph (6-2½, 205), Prince Albert (WHL)
10. LW Wyatt Cullen (6-1, 183), U.S. National Team Development Program
11 (tie). LW Ethan Belchetz (6-5, 230), Windsor (OHL)
11 (tie). LHD Malte Gustafsson (6-4½, 203), HV71 (Sweden)
13. C Tynan Lawrence (6-0½, 183), Boston University (NCAA)
14. RHD Ryan Lin (5-11¼, 180), Vancouver (WHL)
15. C Alexander Command (6-0¾, 187), Örebro (Sweden)
16. LW Oscar Hemming (6-4, 204), Boston College (NCAA)
17. RW Nikita Klepov (6-0, 180), Saginaw (OHL)
18. LW Adam Novotný (6-1, 200), Peterborough (OHL)
19. RW Elton Hermansson (6-0½, 182), MoDo (Sweden)
20. C Oliver Suvanto (6-3, 213), Tappara (Finland)
21. LW JP Hurlbert (6-0, 190), Kamloops (WHL)
The Vibe
It’s already been a hectic stretch before the draft with such big names as Nichushkin, Brady Tkachuk, Alex Tuch, Jordan Kyrou, Darren Raddysh, Bowen Byrum and William Eklund on the move; are more fireworks in store at the draft? A rising cap and lack of marquee UFAs has led to a moving market, and you never know if some more picks might be in play, especially considering the draft capital of such teams as San Jose (two top-nine selections) and St. Louis (four first-round picks). It’s also thought to be a slightly weaker draft than some other years, though wings Gavin McKenna and Ivar Stenberg (and perhaps center Caleb Malhotra and defenseman Chase Reid) seemingly have separated themselves at the top. If the Blue Jackets keep the 14th pick, they’re in a sweet spot with some highly rated players guaranteed to be available.
Three Potential Choices at 14th Overall
Oscar Hemming: If there’s a player that seems like he’s made in the Blue Jackets’ mold, it’s Hemming. The team seems to have prioritized size during Waddell’s tenure, and Hemming brings that at 6-4, 204, plus he showed tremendous scoring ability in Finland’s U-18 league (35-28-63 in 31 games) in 2024-25. He had a tough season – a contract issue in Finland led to him not having a place to play at the start of the campaign, and he finally arrived at Boston College midway through the season as the youngest player in college hockey. Hemming didn’t fill up the score sheet – he had one goal and eight points in 19 games – once he got settled but still profiles as someone who can make an impact.
Ethan Belchetz: He checks many of the same boxes as Hemming – he's big and he can score – with the added CBJ tie that he wears No. 61 in honor of the player he modeled his game after growing up, Rick Nash. If Belchetz's career ends up anywhere in the stratosphere of the Jackets legend, this would end up being a good pick. Belchetz finished last year with 34 goals and 59 points in 57 games with Windsor of the Ontario Hockey League, and he uses his 6-5, 230-pound frame to create chaos on the ice and be a bear at the front of the net. It feels like he might be destined to be a Blue Jacket given his size, skill and number.
Ryan Lin: As we noted earlier, it sure feels like the Blue Jackets are learning toward taking a forward rather than a defenseman in the first round. But if they do choose to take a blueliner, Lin would be a fair choice after placing 14th in our consensus poll. First of all, he’s a right-shot defenseman, which would fill a hole in the team’s pipeline, and on top of that, he profiles similarly to Denton Mateychuk. He’s not the biggest defender (5-11¼, 180) but like Mateychuk he put up big numbers in the WHL (14-43-57 in 53 games) and uses smarts and skating to get the job done in his own zone. You’ve already got the left-handed version; why not add the right-handed one?
Storylines to Follow
Will there be more action? As we just noted, early indications the offseason trade market would be crazy for a variety of reasons have proved to be true given the moves already made. The draft is another opportunity for teams to swing some deals, and who doesn’t like a trade? With free agency set to begin Wednesday, the draft is an unofficial deadline for teams to make some moves before July 1. What could be next in the hopper? We shall see.
The defense won’t rest: One of the storylines in hockey the past few seasons is the rise of the offensive defenseman, as top blueliners have been piling up points the past few years. Of course, CBJ Norris Trophy winner Zach Werenski led the way this past season with his second straight 80-point campaign, but Cale Makar, Quinn Hughes, Evan Bouchard, Calder Trophy winner Matthew Schaefer and others have been true game changers. Perhaps that’s one reason why we’ve seen skilled defensemen move up draft boards in recent years; six of the top 12 players taken in 2024 patrol the blue line, and most were noted for their offensive flair. It could be a similar story this time around, with seven defensemen ranked in the top 14 of our consensus poll. A year ago, the Blue Jackets took Jackson Smith at No. 14, and he was the third blueliner off the board; it seems likely many more will be chosen by the time Columbus’ name comes up.
Is it McKenna’s year? All signs point to yes. A year ago, it seemed to be a slam dunk that Canadian wing Gavin McKenna would be the No. 1 choice after posting video game numbers with Medicine Hat of the Western Hockey League. With the rule change that allowed Canadian junior players to head to the NCAA ranks, he spent this past season at Penn State and tied for fifth in college hockey with 51 points in 35 games despite not turning 18 until the midway point of the season. What’s not to like? Well, he’s not a center, he’s not that big, and the college game occasionally showed his flaws against older players. While he remains most analysts’ choice to be chosen first overall, he’s been pushed by Stenberg, Reid and Malhotra. There are no indications he won’t be the first name called when Toronto has its choice at No. 1, but it could be a fun debate to follow down the road.
