Draft weekend in the NHL is usually a blur of trades, reaches, and front offices congratulating themselves on paper. The 2026 version was no different. Pavel Dorofeyev, Mason McTavish, and Bowen Byram all switched jerseys. But the real story was the kids who finally heard their names called.
Now that the dust has settled, here is how every team actually did. No fluff. No participation trophies.
San Jose Sharks: The Clear Winners
Credit where it’s due. The Sharks walked out of this draft with three first-rounders — Ivar Stenberg, Keaton Verhoeff, and Ryan Lin — and that alone would have been enough for a strong grade. But they didn’t stop there. Every pick after that carried either high upside or solid value. There is no debate. San Jose owned this draft. Grade: A+
Toronto and St. Louis Also Had a Weekend
The Maple Leafs won the lottery and, predictably, took Gavin McKenna first overall. That is the easy part. What made Toronto’s draft impressive was what came after: Alexander Bilecki and Ethan MacKenzie in later rounds, plus goalie Juuso Ainasto who has genuine fans in scouting circles. Grade: A
St. Louis, meanwhile, got Tynan Lawrence at 11 and Maddox Dagenais later in the first round. That is two quality centers in one draft. Then they found Vladimir Proskurin, Luke Schairer, and Lars Steiner in the middle rounds. Doug Armstrong could not have scripted a better exit. Grade: A
Utah, Vancouver, Seattle, and Buffalo All Deserve Mention
Utah landed Ethan Belchetz after he slid further than expected, then grabbed Adam Valentini in the third round. That is a steal. Grade: A-
Vancouver got the best center in Caleb Malhotra and the most underrated winger in Adam Novotny. Brooks Rogowski, Niklas Aaram-Olsen, and Lucian Bernat round out a class that probably should get an A but falls just short because of how stacked the top tier was. Grade: A
Seattle almost traded the seventh pick for Jason Robertson. He declined. So they drafted Chase Reid, a defenseman from the Soo Greyhounds, and kept finding value with Casey Mutryn and Ola Palme. Grade: A-
Buffalo had only five picks but made the fourth overall count with Dax Rudolph, the first defenseman off the board. It was a curveball, but a smart one. Grade: A-
The Middle of the Pack Was Crowded
Anaheim got good value with Mathis Preston in the second round and Eric Frossard late. The Nikita Klepov pick at 15 was solid. But Marcus Nordmark at 29 and Jayden Kurtz at 45 felt like reaches. Grade: B
Calgary reached for Carson Carels at 6 but rebounded with Jack Hextall, Chase Harrington, and Tobias Trejbal. Also, Jarome Iginla’s son Joe got drafted. That is a good story even if it doesn’t move the needle on the grade. Grade: B+
Chicago traded the fourth pick for Bowen Byram but somehow landed Xavier Villeneuve, the best offensive defenseman in the class, in the second round. Ryan Rooboreck and Samu Alalauri add to a solid haul for Kyle Davidson. Grade: B+
Columbus did well with Oscar Hemming and Alessandro Di Iorio early. Jonas Woo in the fifth round is a swing worth taking. Grade: B
Detroit traded Sebastian Cossa for the 23rd pick and grabbed JP Hurlbert. Victor Plante joins his brother Max in the organization. Beckham Edwards is an upside play. Solid weekend. Grade: B-
Florida’s prospect pool has been thin, but Simas Ignatavicius and Ryder Cali could have gone in the first round without anyone blinking. Vilho Vanhatalo has real potential. Grade: B+
Los Angeles added Elton Hermansson at 19 and Adam Goljer at 49, then stole Giorgos Pantelas at 153. Ken Holland did not reach once. Grade: A
Montreal took swings on Gleb Pugachyov and Parker Trottier. Jean-Samuel Daigneault might be the most aggressive player in the entire draft. That aggression alone could get him to the NHL. Grade: B
New Jersey took Alexander Command at 12, which felt safe, then made up for it with Nikita Shcherbakov in the second round. Sunny Mehta’s first draft was not a disaster. Grade: B+
New York traded for Pavel Dorofeyev, drafted Alberts Smits at 5, and took value swings on Ben Macbeath, Tomas Chrenko, and Andre Mondoux. Clean work from Chris Drury. Grade: A-
Pittsburgh drafted twins Liam and Markus Ruck, who dominated the WHL together. Pierce Mbuyi drew first-round buzz earlier in the season. Matvei Nikonovich was a worthy flier. Grade: B
Vegas took Juho Piiparinen, the best pure defensive defenseman, then added Sean Burick and Jonah Sivertson. Nothing flashy, but not bad. Grade: B+
Winnipeg got Viggo Bjorck at 8, the most naturally skilled player in the draft. Zach Wooten in the fourth round and Samuel Hrenak’s late-season surge give this class a solid floor. Grade: B+
And Then There Were the Others
Boston did not pick until 56 and basically took a nap. Roberto Henriquez in the fifth round is promising goalie depth, but that is about it. Grade: C
Carolina won the Stanley Cup, so nobody is really complaining. But the draft class was underwhelming. William Hakansson in the second round is good. Everything else felt like risks. Grade: C
Colorado had a lot of picks but only Egor Shilov stands out. He fell into the early 40s, which is great value. But the rest is thin. Grade: C+
Dallas took Jakub Vanecek and Ryan Brown, both intriguing. Then they made some head-scratchers. Grade: C
Edmonton found Cole Harvey at 180, but went off the board with almost every other pick. Could work. Could be a mess. Grade: C-
Nashville had two first-rounders and used them on Wyatt Cullen and Tommy Bleyl. Bleyl was great. Cullen at 10 felt rich. Dmitri Borichev in the third round is a bright spot. Grade: B
New York Islanders took Malte Gustafsson at 13 and then basically stopped. Nothing else stands out. Grade: B-
Ottawa got two extra first-rounders in the Brady Tkachuk trade, then traded the ninth pick for William Eklund. Then reached on Jonas Lagerberg Hoen (who did not play this season) and Jaxon Cover. Cover is fine. The rest is a mess. Grade: C-
Philadelphia took Maksim Skolovskii, an intriguing defender, and KJ Sauer late. Then made a bunch of questionable calls. Drafting two goalies was a good idea, though. Grade: C-
Tampa Bay has earned the benefit of the doubt. But Oleg Kulebyakin and everyone else in this class is a longshot. Grade: C-
Washington had four picks and grabbed Oliver Suvanto, the third-best center, at 18. Brian McFadden has promise. But they did not maximize their limited selections like Minnesota did. Grade: B-
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