Ottawa Senators president of hockey operations and general manager Steve Staios gave a clear mission to his scouts ahead of the 2026 NHL Entry Draft: identify prospects with high upside.
On Day 1 of the draft, they nabbed Swedish sniper Jonas Lagerberg Hoen with the 25th overall pick, and later Jaxon Cover with the 32nd pick. Both fit that philosophy to a tee.
On Day 2, the Senators selected six more prospects with potential to be impact players in the NHL: Adam Nemec (72nd overall), Oscar Holmertz (87th overall), Louis-Felix Bourque (91st overall), Elliot Lennon (110th overall), Harris Pangretitsch (151st overall), and Alexander Grunin (183rd overall).
“I think our scouts have done a great job of bringing in talent, but I was stretching it with them to push them on upside. I think it's easier when you're scouting and you're going into the draft to feel more comfortable to pick a player who's a little bit further along, a little bit stronger, a little bit more mature, and we had lots of conversations about that, about upside and potential, and how we can build off of the talent,” said Staios.
“As you watch the National Hockey League today, I mean, everybody's roster continues to get more and more dynamic and talented throughout, and if we could have that type of skill in depth throughout the roster over time, I think that you know, we’re witnessing it with a number of teams, but one in particular this year, where they have that type of ability throughout the lineup.”
Nemec, the younger brother of Calgary Flames defenceman Simon Nemec, arrived in North America this past January after spending the first half of the season in his native Slovakia. He potted 14 goals and 35 points in 31 games with the OHL’s Sudbury Wolves.
“He was playing in the men's league in Slovakia, and like a lot of other young kids, they don't get a lot of ice time, and he felt in his draft year, obviously that he needed to get more ice time. Sudbury had drafted him, so he came in in January, and he immediately fit in,” described Senators head scout Don Boyd.
“Ended up playing with [Los Angeles Kings draft pick and fellow Slovak Jan Chovan] and it was kind of a marriage made in heaven. And he was able to put up some points, he made people around him better, he was competitive, he can skate, handle the puck in traffic, and there's some scoring there. Not only did he make other people better, he got a lot of ice time and a lot of specialty teams and was able to perform, so he's going back there next year.”
Holmertz also played part of his season against men, getting into 11 games with Linkopings HC alongside his 34 with their junior team. With the junior team, he finished second in team scoring with 13 goals and 36 points in 34 games. But his time with the professional team also showed that he could hang with pros like Eskild Bakke-Olsen, Jakub Vrana, Oscar Fantenberg, and Ty Rattie.
“When the kids can go up there and get ice time, not even if they put up points, but they can actually get ice time, and they're trusted in the organization by the coaches — because it's no different, they have to win — he was trusted when he was called up,” said Boyd.
“Sometimes these kids only get six, seven, eight, nine minutes in the men's leagues, but he was given an opportunity when he played, and we'll see where that goes, but the hope is, and his hope is, that he gets to play on a regular basis in the SHL.”
With their final pick of the third round, the Senators nabbed their fifth forward in five picks, Louis-Felix Bourque, from the Drummondville Voltigeurs of the QMJHL. On a Voltigeurs team that finished 40-18-3-3, Bourque finished second in goals (24) and third in points (49) while playing only 54 games.
“Bourque’s a skilled kid. He started off as basically a third, fourth line guy in Drummondville at the start of the year, and Drummondville was a real good team this year,” said Boyd.
“And he was able to find the net, he was able to find some scoring, he can shoot the puck and he can skate. By his own admission, I think he has to get more consistent in his game, but the skill level is there and the hockey sense offensively is there.”
In the fourth round, the Senators tapped their third goalie in three drafts, Elliot Lennon. Lennon stands at 6-foot-6, described by Boyd as “a big, long kid without a lot of experience yet”. Lennon is set to play for the Madison Capitals of the USHL next season and is committed to Brown University afterwards.
In the fifth round, the Senators selected their first defenceman of the draft, Harris Pangretitsch of the Soo Greyhounds. As a rookie defenceman, Pangretitsch saw greater responsibility when star defenceman Chase Reid was injured midway through the season.
“I think he'd tell you himself that he's not a real offensive defenceman, but he can handle the puck at the blue line, make the right play at the offensive blue line, he can make the pass out of the zone, he can carry it out of the neutral zone, he’s a kid with a lot of potential there,” said Boyd.
With their final pick of the draft, the Senators selected 6-foot-3 Russian defenceman Alexander Grunin, who has spent the past two seasons with the MHL’s Sibirskie Snaipery.
“He’s again, a long, tall, lean defenceman that is a puck mover… He can move the puck through the neutral zone, he can move it out of the D-zone… there’s probably a little bit more there than meets the eye,” said Boyd.
With eight prospects added to their coffers, the Senators now move ahead to development camp, which begins next week. For the front office, next week also spells the beginning of free agency for Staios.
Ahead of free agency, Staios made four trades, which led to the acquisitions of William Eklund, Kasper Halttunen, Brandon Svoboda, Samuel Ersson, and Andre Burakovsky.
“We looked at every player that would have been available. To make a deal happen, a lot of things have to be there, and a lot of things have to be in place,” said Staios about deciding to use the ninth overall pick on Eklund, and to stand pat and keep the 25th overall pick, used to select Lagerberg Hoen.
“So, as far as making other trades, we're still looking to improve the roster. We're pleased at where it is now, and we're going to continue to build on that depth. As you've seen, [it’s] a bit of a copycat league, but I think we've been in the process of building a certain way.
“The ultimate success of a team happened by building this year, in particular, on the way that they play and the depth that they build, and there's teams around the league where there's players that you go bring in that aren't a fit, so [we made] sure that we could do our best to bring in the right players for our team.”
In Ersson, the Senators added to their goaltending depth, and took a shot at a goaltender only a season removed from a 4 Nations appearance with Team Sweden.
“We want to build on our goaltending depth throughout the organization, and that's why there's people in place to help me make those decisions, and, you know, we're moving in the right direction,” said Staios.
Staios said that the team was interested in bringing back pending unrestricted free agents Nick Cousins and Claude Giroux but didn’t want to divulge specifics of their negotiations. Otherwise, he spoke glowingly about the team’s depth, with the additions of Burakovsky and Eklund to their forward group.
“There's so much variability to this roster. We had effectively two 20-goal scorers on our fourth line wings last year. And is there more for them with more opportunity? Where do they play? How do you move them up and move them around?” pondered Staios.
“Clearly, Eklund is a top-line type of player that can play with skill. Again, there's a lot of players, including center-ice men, who can play the wing and vice versa. So we're going to continue to add to the depth of the roster, and we like the fact that we can have a four-line team that can play. It proves to be effective in our league to be able to have four lines that can play.
“Our coach wants to have that depth and ability to be able to match up and feel comfortable with any line on the ice in most situations. We're not perfect, but certainly I think if you've followed us from day one to where we are now, and how we continue to work and bring in — and a lot of times it's not the biggest name, but we feel it's the most effective fit for our group to make us better.”
