The 2026 NHL Draft is just a few days away, and it’s always a starting point both for players who will become the next wave of talent in the league as well as a chance for teams to find both key players to build their Stanley Cup cases.
At the top of this year’s board are some prospects who have picked up plenty of media hype coming in. Gavin McKenna is the presumed likely No. 1 overall pick for Toronto, as the dynamic wing had a historic level of production two seasons ago with Medicine Hat of the WHL before finishing as one of the top scorers in college hockey a year ago at Penn State.
As the year has unfolded, though, it’s looked like less of a slam dunk that he’ll go No. 1, as he’s been pushed by Swedish wing Ivar Stenberg of Frolunda, creative defenseman Chase Reid (Sault Ste. Marie, OHL) and perhaps the draft’s top center, Caleb Malhotra (Brandford, OHL), a familiar name to CBJ fans as the son of former Blue Jackets center Manny Malhotra.
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Then there’s the Jackets’ top pick at 14th overall, which general manager Don Waddell has said he won’t be afraid to use in a trade if he can provide immediate help to a team that has fallen just short of the postseason in two straight seasons.
That angle may take on added importance given just how wild Tuesday was around the league, as players and draft picks were flying in trades that shook the NHL landscape. Picks Nos. 4, 9 and 16 were among those dealt, leaving San Jose (two top-nine selections) and St. Louis (four first-round picks) among those who could still be wheeling and dealing or poised to add to their prospect pipelines.
If the Jackets do use the selection, an interesting collection of talent might be available including Boston University center Tynan Lawrence, Windsor (OHL) wing Ethan Belchetz, Boston College wing Oscar Hemming, Vancouver (WHL) defenseman Ryan Lin, Swedish center Alexander Command, Swedish defenseman Malte Gustafsson and Finnish center Oliver Suvanto, among others.
In the past few days, we’ve unveiled our consensus poll of the top 33 players draft experts believe are available and recapped what the mock drafts think, but how might things shake out for the Jackets, as well as all the other squads in the draft? And what should fans know going in about this particular draft class?
To find out more, we chatted with two of our favorite draft analysts, Steven Ellis of The Daily Faceoff and Chris Peters of FloHockey. Both have been covering prospects for years and shared their thoughts about the players that might be available at 14 to the Blue Jackets, the top of the draft, and much more.
The CBJ Angle
We’ll start here, considering there’s a decent chance you are reading this because you’re a Blue Jackets fan.
The good news is that if you’re rooting for the Blue Jackets, No. 14 is a good place to be. This year’s composite ranking featured as much variance as we’ve ever seen – 63 different players were rated as first-round picks by the 14 members of the consensus poll – but much of that dispersion comes later in the first round.
While one might argue whether a player should be ranked 10th or 15th, there is at least more consensus around the top half of the first round than the bottom.
“There’s a huge number of players that should be available and reasonably could be picked that will make an impact on the prospect system,” Peters said.
Ellis named four players he’d be most intrigued by at that spot, and here’s what he had to say about each:
- Gustafsson may be gone by pick 14 after checking in at 6-4½, 203 at the NHL Combine, and the defenseman played 27 games in the Swedish Hockey League last year with HV71 and had five points in six games at the IIHF World U-18 Championship. “He’s a guy I have at No. 14, and I feel like that’s one where you could get really excited about him as a top-four defenseman who takes up a lot of space. He’s smart. We got to see him on the power play at the U-18s, but he also does something that a lot of young defensemen overlook and that is actually just play sound defense.”
- Lin measured in at 5-11¼, 180 at the combine, and the defenseman profiles similar to a Denton Mateychuk in that he can score (14-43-57 in 53 games with Vancouver of the WHL) but also hold his own defensively. “He’s a bit undersized. He’s under 6-0, but he’s probably the most naturally skilled defenseman in this class. Watching him this year in the WHL and watching him play with Team Canada internationally, he’s almost always the best player on the ice when he’s out there. He plays a ton of minutes, high-end decision making. You look at some of the guys he models his game after – Lane Hutson, Adam Fox, Quinn Hughes. Those are top-end defensemen, and you see some of those traits in his game every single day.”
- CBJ fans may end up clamoring for Belchetz, as the 6-5, 230 wing wore Rick Nash’s No. 61 while scoring 34 goals in 57 games with Windsor (OHL) last season. “He’s a guy that I call the chaos conductor – somebody who goes out there, he wants to hit everybody, he loves to shoot the puck. I think the thing about him is just making sure every single shift that he’s out there making his presence known because he’s 6-5, he has a huge frame. ... You give him a good center to feed him passes, he’s going to score a lot of goals. He’s very annoying in front of the net and a guy that is really tough to play against.”
- Then there’s Command, who posted 17 goals and 44 points with Örebro’s U-20 team in Sweden and has caught some eyes. “He’s not the flashiest player, but you watch him in Sweden, he’s so reliable. He plays in all situations, and I think that’s the type of thing he can do in the NHL, maybe as a second-line center, maybe as a third-line center. But he’s a guy you can throw in there, kill penalties, play on the power play, be a puck distributor, and you’re going to like what he brings to the table every single shift. That’s type of consistency really matters, and I think there’s a really high floor for him in the NHL.”
For Peters, another name to watch is that of Suvanto, a 6-3, 213-pound pivot who is NHL Central Scouting’s No. 3-rated European skater and played 48 games (2-9-11) with Tappara’s Liiga-winning side this year in Finland.
“I think he’s more of a high floor kind of player as opposed to a high-ceiling kind of player where the baseline is very strong,” Peters said. “He’s gonna be a good two-way center. He has size, and if the scoring comes along, then all of a sudden you’re talking about a guy that plays further up your lineup.”
Other names to watch in Peters’ eyes include 6-3¾, 198-pound center Maddox Dagenais, who had 30 goals and 62 points in 62 games with Quebec of the QMJHL; as well as a group of defensemen that includes Lin, Thomas Bleyl (13-68-81 in 63 games with Moncton of the QMJHL), Xavier Villeneuve (6-32-38 in 37 games with Blainville-Boisbriand of the QMJHL) and William Håkansson (0-2-2 in 22 games with Luleå in Sweden).
The Battle For No. 1
Coming into the season, there wasn’t much debate – McKenna was thought to be a generational player and the obvious No. 1 pick after dominating the WHL in 2024-25 with 50 goals and 167 points between 72 regular-season and playoff games.
He didn’t have a bad freshman season at Penn State – with a 15-36-51 line in 35 games, he tied for fifth in college hockey in scoring – but the warts of his game were more exposed by the older NCAA competition. His skill is undeniable, but he has gains to make defensively and there are concerns whether he can drive play at the higher levels. Add in a lack of premium size (5-11¼, 170) and position – he plays wing, not center – and some believe Stenberg, Reid or Malhotra may deserve the top spot.
In all, 11 of the 14 consensus poll rankings had McKenna at No. 1, including Peters, who also acknowledged there was a debate to be had.
“There were definitely other guys in the mix,” Peters said. “I think McKenna is a really good player, and I think my analysis of him throughout the season has been hard because I think the thing is that there is clearly a lot of talent, but I also think with any player that is young, there were going to be flaws, too. Part of it is when you’re picking at No. 1, you would like to see as few flaws as possible. He’s a winger, and not a lot of teams are going to spend a first-round pick on a winger unless they’re exceptional because nobody really builds a team through the wing.”
Ellis also listed McKenna as the top prospect in his rankings, pointing to his ability to play big minutes at such a young age – he didn’t turn 18 until Dec. 20 – at such a high level while still producing offensively as evidence of his abilities.
“I think Gavin McKenna is definitely the best prospect in this draft,” Ellis said. “I think it’s hard to look past his skill and hockey sense. The thing that so many scouts are looking for is a player’s brain and making sure this guy can think and process at a high level. I think that’s something Gavin McKenna does better than most people.”
It also helps McKenna’s cause that no other prospect rose up and took the spot, either. Stenberg ranked second in our consensus poll after posting 11-22-33 in 43 games with Frölunda as well as standout showings at the World Juniors (4-6-10 in seven games) and World Championships (4-4-8 in eight games), but he is also a wing who lacks ideal size (5-11, 183). Reid brings offense (18-30-48 in 45 games with the Soo in the OHL) but Peters said he’s not sold on him as a No. 1 defenseman, while Malhotra (29-55-84 in 67 games with OHL Brantford) is being pushed by Sweden’s Viggo Björck down the middle.
Of course, a year ago, some scouts diverged on whether Matthew Schaefer was the No. 1 overall pick, and he had a historic season with the New York Islanders, so it all may just be draft noise as well. At the end of the day, the Maple Leafs will make the decision.
Who’s Rising?
Björck measures in at 5-9, 180, but the consensus seems to be that the center has played himself into being a top-10 pick after spending most of this past season with Djurgärdens of the SHL (6-9-15 in 45 games), dominating the Swedish U-20 playoffs (8-12-20 in nine games) and combining for 15 points in 15 games with his home country at the World Juniors and World Championships.
Add in an impressive combine performance and he is one of the prospects with the most buzz going into the draft, placing sixth in our consensus poll.
“I think there are a lot of people that would even put him ahead of Malhotra as a potential No. 1 center in this class despite the fact he is smaller,” Peters said. “There was a lot of Viggo Björck love coming out of the combine. I think the teams that met with him really got a sense of understanding as to why he has had the level of success that he’s had at a young age.”
Another player who has moved up is U.S. National Team Development Program wing Wyatt Cullen, who placed 10th in our consensus poll. That name should sound familiar – his father, Matt, played 21 years in the NHL, and a variety of other relatives have played high-level hockey – and Wyatt (6-1, 183) posted three goals and nine points in five games at the U-18 Worlds.
“He’s had a huge growth spurt over the last two years,” Peters said. "In a class that doesn’t have a ton of players with true dynamic skill, he’s one of them. There’s a belief that maybe outside of that top five, that’s a guy that could potentially be a top-line player if he continues on his trajectory that he’s currently on.”
Another player on the rise is Gustafsson, which might end up being a disappointment to CBJ fans who were hoping to get the big Swedish defenseman at No. 14. His performance at the U-18 Worlds and favorable measurement at the combine could lift him out of the Jackets’ pick range, though a few observers have mocked him to the Jackets and he tied for 11th in our consensus poll.
“I think the one to keep an eye on would be Malte Gustafsson,” Ellis said. “This is a guy that’s been hovering around that 10-14 range most of the season. I think watching him at the U-18s, he showed an offensive element that I don’t think we got to see and really showcase all the time this year in Sweden. He’s a player that every time I talked to other Swedish players, they cited him as the toughest player to beat. He has a big frame. He’s 6-4, he played well in the SHL, but then he also went out there and looked really good against his own age group.”
Describing The Draft
If there’s a theme around the top of this year’s draft, it’s that it’s a good year to be looking for a defenseman. Seven of the top 14 players in our consensus poll patrol the blue line, a list that includes Reid (third), Carson Carels (fifth), Keaton Verhoeff (seventh), Alberts Šmits (eighth), Daxon Rudolph (ninth), Gustafsson (tied for 11th) and Lin (14th).
In some ways, it echoes the 2024 draft, which saw six blueliners go in the top 12.
“This feels like a draft that’s going to have a lot of high-end defensemen,” Ellis said. “I think you’re going to be looking at anywhere in the top 15, we could see seven guys from the blue line taken. That’s exciting. It reminds you a bit of 2024 where everyone was talking about the Macklin Celebrini draft, but there were still a lot of high-end defensemen in that draft who are going to be very good players.”
Another hallmark of this year’s selection process could be its unpredictability. All drafts somehow seem to have their moments of surprise, but with so many players being graded all over the map by both teams and analysts, Friday night could be one for the books.
“There’s really about six or seven guys that I feel like have the opportunity to be the best player in this draft,” Peters said. “And as always, there’s the case that there are guys that we’re not even talking about that over the course of time could become that. That unpredictability is the feature of this draft, and it’s maybe more pronounced than other years. If we looked at every team’s list, we would see drastically different things.”
