FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. - The Florida Panthers selected six players today at the 2026 NHL Draft at KeyBank Center in Buffalo, N.Y.
“We’re looking forward to working with these young men, and making them Florida Panthers,” said Panthers President of Hockey Operations & General Manager Bill Zito. “Each of these players, in our minds, fits the mold that they could plug in with our team.”
The Florida Panthers 2026 draft class includes:
Simas Ignatavicius – Forward, Genève-Servette HC | Round 2, 40th Overall
Ignatavicius, 18, skated in 52 games with Genève-Servette HC of the Swiss National League in 2025-26, accumulating 13 points (7-6-13) and a plus-seven rating.
The 6-foot-3, 201-pound native of Memphis, Tenn., has played in Genève-Servette HC’s system since 2020-21 at the U15, U17 and U20 levels. On the international stage, he represented his home country of Lithuania at the IIHF U18 Division I, Group B tournament and U20 Division II, Group A tournament in 2023-24 and 2024-25.
Ignatavicius becomes the fourth Lithuanian to be drafted in the NHL after Darius Kasparaitis, Dainius Zubrus and Andrey Pedan.
Ryder Cali – Forward, North Bay Battalion | Round 2, 48th Overall
Cali, 17, played in 47 Ontario Hockey League (OHL) games with the North Bay Battalion in 2025-26, producing 36 points (16-20-36).
The 6-foot-2, 218-pound forward originally born in Lugano, Switzerland, represented his home country of Canada at the 2026 U18 World Junior Championship, notching one assist and a plus-five rating over five tournament games. He is committed to the NCAA’s Providence College in 2026-27.
Jonas Kemps – Defenseman, Chicago Steel | Round 4, 98th Overall
Kemps, 18, skated in 57 United States Hockey League (USHL) games with the Chicago Steel in 2025-26, producing nine points (2-7-9).
The 6-foot-6, 196-pound native of Sebastopol, Calif., previously played 30 USHL games with the United States National Team Development Program in 2024-25, logging four assists. He is signed to play for the WHL’s Seattle Thunderbirds in 2026-27 and committed the NCAA’s Michigan State Spartans in 2027-28.
Vilho Vanhatalo – Forward, Tappara Tampere | Round 6, 168th Overall
Vanhatalo, 18, competed in eight games with Tappara Tampere (Liiga), who are partly owned by Panthers Captain Aleksander Barkov. He also played in 38 games with Tappara’s U20 club, producing 19 points (10-9-19).
The 6-foot-4, 194-pound native of Tampere, Finland represented his home country at the 2026 IIHF U18 World Junior Championship, scoring one goal across five tournament games. He also represented Finland at the 2025 World U17 Hockey Challenge.
During the 2024-25 campaign, Vanhatalo helped Tappara’s U18 club capture the league championship, leading the league with 37 goals (37-21-58) and was named to the league’s First All-Star Team.
Cole Zurawski – Forward, Owen Sound Attack | Round 6, 181st Overall
Zurawski, 18, played in 63 Ontario Hockey League (OHL) games with the Owen Sound Attack in 2025-26, producing 46 points (24-22-46), ranking fourth on the team in goals scored.
The 6-foot-1, 194-pound native of Etobicoke, Ontario has played in 124 OHL games across two seasons for Owen Sound (2024-25 to 2025-26) and the Flint Firebirds (2024-25), amassing 77 points (40-37-77).
He is committed to play at the NCAA’s University of Notre Dame in 2026-27.
Louis-Antoine Denault – Goaltender, Newfoundland Regiment | Round 7, 217th Overall
Denault, 19, appeared in 42 Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL) games in 2025-26 between the Quebec Remparts and Newfoundland Regiment, posting a combined 22-15-3 record. With the Regiment he logged a .913 save percentage over 25 games, and a .911 save percentage in 17 contests with Quebec.
The 6-foot-8, 209-pound native of Quebec City, Quebec has played in three QMJHL seasons between Newfoundland (2025-26) and Quebec (2023-24 to 2025-26), producing a cumulative 46-46-10 record in 112 games.
Denault attended Florida’s development camp and prospect tournament in 2025.
For all information including Panthers coverage and news for the 2026 NHL Draft, visit FloridaPanthers.com/DraftCentral.
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