The best prospect in a decade went first overall to the team that fell apart to get him. Gavin McKenna - 18, from Whitehorse, Yukon, the presumptive number one for years - is a Toronto Maple Leaf, the reward for a franchise-record collapse that turned a contender into a lottery winner. It is the rare draft where the headline pick and the season that earned it tell the same story: the 2026 Draft belonged to the teams that had already decided to tear it down.
Two hundred and twenty-three players were selected. The San Jose Sharks walked away with three first-round picks. The Minnesota Wild made three selections total, all weekend. That gap - between the teams stockpiling futures and the teams that spent them chasing now - is the entire draft. Below, all 32 teams, graded with the whole board in front of us.
3
San Jose's First-Round Picks
11
LA's Total Picks - the Most
3
Minnesota's Total Picks - the Fewest
Whitehorse
Where McKenna Is From
Gavin McKenna Is a Maple Leaf, and the Rebuild Has Its Cornerstone
McKenna was not a surprise; he has been the projected first-overall pick of this class since he was 16. What's notable is where he landed. Toronto's franchise-record collapse - the one that cost Craig Berube and Brad Treliving their jobs and sent Mitch Marner to Vegas - bottomed out into the number-one pick, and the Leafs used it on the most dynamic offensive talent to enter the league in years. In his freshman season at Penn State, McKenna posted 15 goals and 36 assists for 51 points in 35 games, third in the Big Ten, and dragged the Nittany Lions to the NCAA Tournament.
For a franchise that spent a decade with a top-heavy, playoff-fragile core, a generational teenage playmaker arriving on an entry-level contract is the best possible outcome of a lost season. You do not want to collapse. But if you do, you want to collapse into a McKenna.
“The Maple Leafs earned the top pick after an abysmal 2025-26 campaign, and they used it to select one of the most dynamic playmakers in the class. McKenna should give Toronto an offensive boost immediately.”
— The consensus read on the No. 1 pick
The Full First Round
After McKenna, the run of talent skewed European and defensive. San Jose took Swedish winger Ivar Stenberg second; Vancouver made the sentimental pick of the night at third. Defencemen dominated the top ten. Here is the complete opening round.
2026 NHL Draft - First Round
| Pick | Team | Player | Pos | From |
|---|
| 1 | TOR | Gavin McKenna | LW | Penn State (B1G) |
| 2 | SJS | Ivar Stenberg | LW | Frölunda (SHL) |
| 3 | VAN | Caleb Malhotra | C | Brantford (OHL) |
| 4 | BUF | Daxon Rudolph | D | Prince Albert (WHL) |
| 5 | NYR | Alberts Smits | D | Red Bull München (DEL) |
| 6 | CGY | Carson Carels | D | Prince George (WHL) |
| 7 | SEA | Chase Reid | D | Sault Ste. Marie (OHL) |
| 8 | WPG | Viggo Björck | C | Djurgården (SHL) |
| 9 | SJS | Keaton Verhoeff | D | North Dakota (NCHC) |
| 10 | NSH | Wyatt Cullen | LW | U.S. NTDP |
| 11 | STL | Tynan Lawrence | C | Boston University |
| 12 | NJD | Alexander Command | C | Örebro (SHL) |
| 13 | NYI | Malte Gustafsson | D | HV71 (SHL) |
| 14 | CBJ | Oscar Hemming | LW | Boston College |
| 15 | ANA | Nikita Klepov | RW | Saginaw (OHL) |
| 16 | STL | Maddox Dagenais | C | Québec (QMJHL) |
| 17 | UTA | Ethan Belchetz | LW | Windsor (OHL) |
| 18 | WSH | Oliver Suvanto | C | Tappara (Liiga) |
| 19 | LAK | Elton Hermansson | RW | Modo (Allsvenskan) |
| 20 | BUF | Ilia Morozov | C | Miami (NCHC) |
| 21 | SJS | Ryan Lin | D | Vancouver Giants (WHL) |
| 22 | PIT | Liam Ruck | RW | Medicine Hat (WHL) |
| 23 | DET | JP Hurlbert | LW | Kamloops (WHL) |
| 24 | VAN | Adam Novotny | LW | Peterborough (OHL) |
| 25 | OTT | Jonas Lagerberg Hoen | RW | Leksand (SHL) |
| 26 | MTL | Gleb Pugachyov | RW | Torpedo (KHL) |
| 27 | PHI | Maksim Sokolovskii | D | London (OHL) |
| 28 | ANA | Marcus Nordmark | LW | Djurgården (SHL) |
| 29 | VGK | Juho Piiparinen | D | Tappara (Liiga) |
| 30 | CGY | Jack Hextall | C | Youngstown (USHL) |
| 31 | NSH | Tommy Bleyl | D | Moncton (QMJHL) |
| 32 | OTT | Jaxon Cover | LW | London (OHL) |
The Family Names on the Board
Three of the weekend's best storylines shared a surname with someone you know. Vancouver took Caleb Malhotra third overall - the son of former NHLer and current Canucks assistant Manny Malhotra, drafted by the team his father helps coach. Calgary used the 65th pick on Joe Iginla, son of Flames legend and Hall of Famer Jarome Iginla, a full-circle moment for the franchise. And Pittsburgh drafted brothers on the same day: Liam Ruck at 22 and Markus Ruck at 39. The league's next generation is, in several cases, its last one's.
How We Graded
Grading a draft the week it happens is grading potential energy, not results - none of these players has taken an NHL shift, and most are years from one. So the grades reward what can be judged today: the quality of the headline pick, the volume and position of a team's capital, and how the haul fits the plan. The prospects settle the real verdict around 2029. Every team is here.
A Tier - The Winners
A+
Toronto Maple Leafs
No. 1 McKenna · 10 picks (6 in top 3 rounds)
You cannot do better than the best prospect in the class, and Toronto got him. A generational playmaker on an entry-level deal is the ideal foundation for a reset, and the Leafs added nine more selections behind him. The season was a disaster; the draft was a coronation.
A
San Jose Sharks
#2 Stenberg, #9 Verhoeff, #21 Lin - three first-rounders
The model rebuild keeps compounding. Three first-round picks in one draft is a stockpile few teams ever assemble: a high-end Swedish winger and two defencemen to grow around a young core. Patient, disciplined, ruthless - the best non-Toronto weekend in the league.
A-
#6 Carels, #30 Hextall, plus Joe
Iginla at 65 · 9 picks, 6 in top 3 rounds
The reward for a full fire sale. Two first-round defencemen, three more selections inside the top 65, and the poetry of drafting Jarome's son. One of the deepest, most emotionally resonant classes of the weekend.
A-
#3 Malhotra, #24
Novotny · 9 picks, two in the second round
A high-end centre with pedigree and a hometown story, then real depth behind him. Exactly the kind of down-the-middle restock a team drifting toward a reset needed.
B Tier - Strong Weekends
B+
#11
Lawrence, #16 Dagenais - two first-rounders · 9 picks
The most aggressive team of the offseason still left the first round twice. Adding two first-round centres while also trading for
McTavish and
Carlo is having it both ways: buying the present and stocking the future in the same summer.
B+
#5
Alberts Smits · 9 picks
A top-five defenceman anchors a deep class for a team that stayed busy on the trade market too.
Smits is the highest-ceiling pick outside the top four, and the Rangers padded it with volume.
B+
#15
Klepov, #28
Nordmark · 9 picks, two in the second round
The proceeds of selling
Carlson,
McTavish and
Gudas, put to work. Two first-round wingers and a genuinely deep board added to a young group that already made noise last spring. A textbook seller's harvest.
B+
11 picks - the most of anyone · #19 Hermansson · 5 in the top 3 rounds
Nobody cast a wider net. Without a top-15 selection, the Kings turned the weekend into a volume play - eleven swings, five of them early, spread across every round from a Swedish winger at 19 to five separate mid-round bets. If even two or three hit, this is how a team that needs to get younger does it in bulk.
B
#4 Rudolph, #20 Morozov - two first-rounders
High-end but top-heavy: a top-five defenceman and a first-round centre, then only three more picks. Quality over quantity, with the quality landing early.
B
#10 Cullen, #31 Bleyl - two first-rounders · 8 picks
A first-round American winger, a first-round defenceman and steady mid-round volume. A quietly productive weekend that fits a team retooling on the fly.
B
Seattle Kraken
#7 Chase Reid · 8 picks
A top-ten shutdown defenceman and a full slate behind him. Not flashy, but a solid, need-oriented class for a team still building an identity.
B
#22 & #39 the Ruck brothers · 6 picks, two in the second round
The rebuild capital is starting to stack. A late first, an early second, and the feel-good angle of drafting brothers - Pittsburgh is quietly assembling the youth its aging core has lacked.
B
#25 & #32 - two late first-rounders · 8 picks
Two cracks at the back of the first round and solid mid-round depth. Not a headline class, but a sensible one for a team on the rise that didn't need to swing for the fences.
B
New Jersey Devils
#12 Command · 7 picks, two in the second round
A first-round centre and a pair of early seconds. Reasonable value for a team drafting in the middle, with enough volume to find a contributor or two.
B-
Detroit Red Wings
#23 Hurlbert · 7 picks
A late-first winger and steady depth. Fine, unspectacular business for a franchise whose bigger questions are on the current roster, not the pipeline.
B-
Columbus Blue Jackets
A mid-first winger out of Boston College and a full board behind him. A middle-of-the-pack weekend that quietly adds to a maturing prospect group.
B-
Utah Mammoth
#17 Belchetz · 6 picks
One first-round winger and a modest haul - the price of a busy trade summer that included the
Trocheck add. Enough here to keep the pipeline ticking.
B-
Montreal Canadiens
#26 Pugachyov · 8 picks
A late-first Russian winger and real volume. Montreal keeps feeding one of the league's better prospect systems with quantity, even without a premium selection.
B-
Winnipeg Jets
A top-ten centre is a strong headliner, but the class thins quickly behind him - nothing in the second round. Great pick, shallow follow-through.
B-
Philadelphia Flyers
#27 Sokolovskii · 6 picks, two in the second round
A late-first defenceman and a pair of early seconds. A workmanlike weekend that adds pieces without moving the needle.
C Tier - Quiet or Costly
B-
Chicago Blackhawks
#34
Villeneuve & #35
Roobroeck to open the second round · 5 picks
No first-round pick, but back-to-back selections to start the second round gave the Hawks two early swings. A thinner class than a rebuilder wants, salvaged by that early-second doubleheader.
C+
New York Islanders
#13 Malte Gustafsson · 5 picks
A mid-first defenceman is a fine headliner, but only five picks total is a light weekend. Quality at the top, not much underneath.
C+
Vegas Golden Knights
#29 Piiparinen · 7 picks
A late-first Finnish defenceman and volume, but nothing before the back of the first round - the standard profile of a perennial contender that trades from its pipeline.
C+
Colorado Avalanche
no first-rounder (earliest #43) · 9 picks
No pick until the second round, but the Avs made up for it with sheer volume - nine selections is real depth-mining for a contender that spent its top capital elsewhere.
C+
Carolina Hurricanes
no pick until #51 · 6 picks
Exactly the draft a Stanley Cup champion has: no early selections, a handful of late-round dart throws. When you win it all and add
Carlson for depth, this is the trade-off, and it's a fine one.
C+
Boston Bruins
no pick until #56 · 7 picks
This is the bill for J.J.
Peterka. Boston spent two first-round picks to land a 25-goal winger and drafted accordingly - nothing early, volume late. Defensible if you believe in the player, and they clearly do.
C
Florida Panthers
no first-rounder (earliest #40) · 6 picks
A back-to-back-Final contender drafting from the back of the board. Thin, as expected, though the Panthers have earned the right not to care much about a draft class right now.
C
Tampa Bay Lightning
no first-rounder (earliest #52) · 6 picks
Another aging contender with a late, light class. Tampa's window is about the present; the pipeline is an afterthought, and this weekend reflected it.
C
Washington Capitals
#18 Suvanto · 4 picks
A mid-first centre is a nice get, but four total selections is the thinnest top-heavy class in the league. One good pick doesn't make a good weekend.
D Tier - The Bill for Buying
C-
5 picks · earliest selection #58
The tax of winning now. Edmonton spent its picks and cap on the present -
Andersen,
Levi, the
Nurse reset - and it shows: no first- or second-rounder, a thin, late class. Defensible for a Cup contender, but the pipeline paid the price.
C-
Dallas Stars
5 picks · earliest selection #59
The
Bourque trade and a busy summer left Dallas with almost nothing early. A five-pick weekend with no top-58 selection is the profile of a team all-in on its current core.
D+
Minnesota Wild
3 picks · earliest selection #83
Three players, all weekend, nothing before the third round. The bill for buying -
Coleman, Määttä and a busy trade summer cost the Wild their entire draft. A win-now signal as loud as any trade they made, and the thinnest class in the league.
Strength
Best Weekend · Toronto
The best prospect in the class, full stop. However painful the season that produced the pick, McKenna is the kind of talent a franchise builds a decade around.
Strength
Best Rebuild Harvest · San Jose & Calgary
Three first-rounders for the Sharks; two firsts and six top-65 picks - plus Iginla's son - for the Flames. This is what turning veterans into futures looks like when it's done with conviction.
Opportunity
Biggest Volume Play · Los Angeles
Eleven picks, more than any team, without a single top-15 selection. A pure numbers bet: cast the widest net in the league and trust that two or three swim.
Concern
Thinnest Class · Minnesota
Three total picks, nothing until No. 83. The cost of a win-now summer is a draft weekend with almost nothing in it. Fine if the present delivers; costly if it doesn't.
The Draft and the Summer Told One Story
The Teams That Sold Won the Weekend. The Teams That Bought Paid for It.
Read the grade sheet top to bottom and it maps almost perfectly onto the trade tracker. San Jose, Calgary and Anaheim stripped down veteran rosters and turned them into the deepest draft classes in the league. St. Louis found a way to do both at once. And at the bottom sit Minnesota, Edmonton, Dallas and the veteran contenders - the buyers and the win-now clubs, who spent their picks and cap on players meant to help right now.
Neither approach is wrong. A contender should trade picks for proven help; a rebuilder should hoard them. The 2026 Draft simply drew the line between the two philosophies in the clearest ink of the offseason. Toronto, uniquely, got to stand on both sides of it - a lost season, and the generational player who makes it worth it.
Come back in 2029. That's when we'll know whether McKenna was the steal he looks like, whether San Jose's stockpile hit, and whether the teams that sold the future for the present chose right. For now, the weekend belongs to the rebuilders - and to a teenager from the Yukon who just became the most important Maple Leaf in a generation.
