2026 NHL entry draft


The 2026 NHL entry draft will be the 64th NHL entry draft. The draft will be held on June 26–27, 2026 at KeyBank Center in Buffalo, New York.

Eligibility

Ice hockey players born between January 1, 2006, and September 15, 2008, are eligible for selection in the 2026 NHL entry draft. Additionally, un-drafted, non-North American players born in 2005 are eligible for the draft; and those players who were drafted in the 2024 NHL entry draft, but not signed by an NHL team and who were born after June 30, 2006, are also eligible to re-enter the draft.

Top prospects

RankingNorth American skatersEuropean skaters
1

Traded picks

The order of the 2026 entry draft will be finalized upon the conclusion of the 2025–26 NHL season. However, some teams have already exchanged picks for this draft via trade. These picks are listed below.

Round one

  1. The Florida Panthers' first-round pick will go to the Chicago Blackhawks as the result of a trade on March 1, 2025, that sent Seth Jones and a fourth-round pick in 2026 to Florida in exchange for Spencer Knight and this pick. The condition – Chicago will receive a first-round pick in 2026 if Florida possesses their first-round pick in 2026 before the start of the 2025 NHL entry draft. – was converted on June 27, 2025.
  2. The Minnesota Wild's first round pick will go to the Vancouver Canucks as the result of a trade on December 12, 2025, that sent Quinn Hughes to Minnesota in exchange for Marco Rossi, Liam Ohgren, Zeev Buium, and this pick.
  3. The Ottawa Senators' first-round pick will be forfeited as the result of a penalty sanction due to the trade of Evgenii Dadonov to the Vegas Golden Knights, and Dadonov's subsequent voided trade to the Anaheim Ducks.
  4. The Vegas Golden Knights' first-round pick will go to the Calgary Flames as the result of a trade on March 6, 2024, that sent Mikhail Vorobyev to Vegas in exchange for Daniil Miromanov, a conditional third-round pick in 2025 and this pick. The condition – Calgary will receive a first-round pick in 2026 if Vegas does not possess their first-round pick in 2025 by March 10, 2024 – was converted when Vegas transferred their first-round pick in 2025 to San Jose on March 8, 2024.

    Round two

  5. The Buffalo Sabres' second-round pick will go to the Ottawa Senators as the result of a trade on March 7, 2025, that sent Jacob Bernard-Docker and Josh Norris to Buffalo in exchange for Dylan Cozens, Dennis Gilbert, and this pick.
  6. The Carolina Hurricanes' second-round pick will go to the New York Rangers as the result of a trade on July 1, 2025, that sent K'Andre Miller to Carolina in exchange for Scott Morrow, a conditional first-round pick 2026, and this pick.
  7. The Colorado Avalanche's second-round pick will go to the San Jose Sharks as the result of a trade on December 9, 2024, that sent Mackenzie Blackwood, Givani Smith and a fifth-round pick in 2027 to Colorado in exchange for Alexandar Georgiev, Nikolai Kovalenko, a fifth-round pick in 2025 and this pick.
  8. The Columbus Blue Jackets' second-round pick will go to the Los Angeles Kings as the result of a trade on December 19, 2025, that sent Phillip Danault to Montreal in exchange for this pick.
  9. : Montreal previously acquired this pick as the result of a trade on August 19, 2024, that sent Jordan Harris to Columbus in exchange for Patrik Laine and this pick.
  10. The Minnesota Wild's second-round pick will go to the Nashville Predators as the result of a trade on March 1, 2025, that sent Gustav Nyquist to Minnesota in exchange for this pick.
  11. The New York Islanders' second-round pick will go to the Chicago Blackhawks as the result of a trade on June 29, 2023, that sent future considerations to New York in exchange for Josh Bailey and this pick.
  12. The New York Rangers' second-round pick will go to the Utah Mammoth as the result of a trade on July 13, 2022, that sent Ty Emberson to New York in exchange for Patrik Nemeth, a second-round pick in 2025 and this pick. The condition – Arizona will receive a third-round pick in 2024 or a second-round pick in 2026, at their choice – was converted when the Rangers' third-round pick in 2024 was transferred to St. Louis on March 27, 2023.
  13. The Ottawa Senators' second-round pick will go to the Utah Mammoth as the result of a trade on March 1, 2023, that sent Jakob Chychrun to Ottawa in exchange for a conditional first-round pick in 2023, a conditional second-round pick in 2024 and this pick.
  14. The St. Louis Blues' second-round pick will go to the Columbus Blue Jackets as the result of a trade on December 29, 2025, that sent Yegor Chinakhov to Pittsburgh in exchange for Danton Heinen, a third-round pick in 2027 and this pick.
  15. : Pittsburgh previously acquired this pick as the result of a trade on August 13, 2024, that sent St. Louis' second-round pick in 2025 and a fifth-round pick in 2026 to St. Louis in exchange for Ottawa's third-round pick in 2025 and this pick.
  16. The San Jose Sharks' second-round pick will go to the Vancouver Canucks as the result of a trade on January 19, 2026, that sent Kiefer Sherwood to San Jose in exchange for Cole Clayton, a second-round pick in 2027 and this pick.
  17. The Toronto Maple Leafs' second-round pick will go to the Chicago Blackhawks as the result of a trade on February 27, 2023, that sent Sam Lafferty, Jake McCabe, a conditional fifth-round pick in 2024 and a conditional fifth-round pick in 2025 to Toronto in exchange for Joey Anderson, Pavel Gogolev, a conditional first-round pick in 2025 and this pick.
  18. The Washington Capitals' second-round pick will go to the Florida Panthers as the result of a trade on June 26, 2025, that sent Justin Sourdif to Washington in exchange for a sixth-round pick in 2027 and this pick.
  19. The Winnipeg Jets' second-round pick will go to the Pittsburgh Penguins as a result of a trade on March 7, 2025 that sent Luke Schenn to Winnipeg in exchange for a fourth-round pick in 2027 and this pick.

    Round three

  20. The Carolina Hurricanes' third-round pick will go to the Utah Mammoth as the result of a trade on March 1, 2023, that sent Shayne Gostisbehere to Carolina in exchange for this pick.
  21. The Colorado Avalanche's third-round pick will go to the Columbus Blue Jackets as the result of a trade on November 30, 2024, that sent David Jiricek and a fifth-round pick in 2025 to Minnesota in exchange for Daemon Hunt, a conditional first-round pick in 2025, Toronto's fourth-round pick in 2026, a second-round pick in 2027 and this pick.
  22. : Minnesota previously acquired this pick as the result of a trade on March 7, 2024, that sent Brandon Duhaime to Colorado in exchange for this pick.
  23. The Dallas Stars' third-round pick will go to the Los Angeles Kings as the result of a trade on June 28, 2025, that sent Nashville's third-round pick in 2025 to Carolina in exchange for a fourth-round pick in 2025 and this pick.
  24. :Carolina previously acquired this pick as the result of a trade on March 7, 2025, that sent Mikko Rantanen to Dallas in exchange for Logan Stankoven, conditional first-round picks in 2026 and 2028, a third-round pick in 2027, and this pick.
  25. The Florida Panthers' third-round pick will go to the Ottawa Senators as the result of a trade on March 6, 2024, that sent Vladimir Tarasenko to Florida in exchange for a third-round pick in 2025 and this pick. The condition – Ottawa will receive a third-round pick in 2026 if Florida wins the Stanley Cup in 2024 – was converted on June 24, 2024.
  26. The New Jersey Devils' third-round pick will go to the New York Islanders as the result of a trade on January 27, 2026, that sent Maxim Tsyplakov to New Jersey in exchange for Ondrej Palat, a sixth-round pick in 2027, and this pick.
  27. The New York Islanders' third-round pick will go to the New York Rangers as the result of a trade on January 26, 2026, that sent Carson Soucy to the Islanders in exchange for this pick.
  28. The San Jose Sharks' third-round pick will go to the Pittsburgh Penguins as the result of a trade on August 6, 2023, that sent Mikael Granlund, Mike Hoffman, Jan Rutta and a conditional first-round pick in 2024 to San Jose in exchange for Dillon Hamaliuk, Erik Karlsson and this pick.
  29. The Seattle Kraken's third-round pick will go to the Dallas Stars as the result of a trade on June 19, 2025, that sent Mason Marchment to Seattle in exchange for a fourth-round pick in 2025 and this pick.
  30. The Vancouver Canucks' third-round pick will go to the Calgary Flames as the result of a trade on November 30, 2023, that sent Nikita Zadorov to Vancouver in exchange for a conditional fifth-round pick in 2024 and this pick.
  31. The Washington Capitals' third-round pick will go to the Ottawa Senators as a results of a trade on July 1, 2024, that sent Jakob Chychrun to Washington in exchange for Nick Jensen and this pick.

    Round four

  32. The Anaheim Ducks' fourth-round pick will go to the Seattle Kraken as the result of a trade on July 2, 2024, that sent Brian Dumoulin to Anaheim in exchange for this pick.
  33. The Carolina Hurricanes' fourth-round pick will go to the Colorado Avalanche as the result of a trade on January 24, 2025, that sent the drafts rights of Nils Juntorp to Carolina in exchange for Jack Drury, Martin Necas, a second-round pick in 2025, and this pick.
  34. The Chicago Blackhawks' fourth-round pick will go to the Florida Panthers as the result of a trade on March 1, 2025, that sent Spencer Knight and a conditional first-round pick in 2026 to Chicago in exchange for Seth Jones and this pick.
  35. The Dallas Stars' fourth-round pick will go to the New Jersey Devils as the result of a trade on February 28, 2024, that sent Christopher Tanev to Dallas in exchange for this pick.
  36. The Columbus Blue Jackets' fourth-round pick will go to the Detroit Red Wings as the result of a trade on June 28, 2025, that sent a third-round pick in 2025 to Columbus in exchange for a fourth-round pick in 2025 and this pick.
  37. The Detroit Red Wings' fourth-round pick will go to the Anaheim Ducks as the result of a trade on June 28, 2025, that sent John Gibson to Detroit in exchange for Petr Mrazek, a second-round pick in 2027 and this pick.
  38. The Edmonton Oilers' fourth-round pick will go to the Buffalo Sabres as the result of a trade on March 7, 2025, that sent Henri Jokiharju to Boston in exchange for this pick.
  39. : Boston previously acquired this pick as the result of a trade that sent Petr Hauser and Max Jones to Edmonton in exchange for Max Wanner, St. Louis' second-round pick in 2025.
  40. The Florida Panthers' fourth-round pick will go to the San Jose Sharks as the result of a trade on March 6, 2025, that sent Nico Sturm and a seventh-round pick in 2027 to Florida in exchange for this pick.
  41. The New York Rangers' fourth-round pick will go to the Seattle Kraken as the result of a trade on December 19, 2025, that sent Mason Marchment to Columbus in exchange for a second-round pick in 2027 and this pick.
  42. : Columbus previously acquired this pick as the result of a trade on March 8, 2024, that sent Jack Roslovic to New York in exchange for this pick. The condition – Columbus will receive a fourth-round pick in 2026 if the Rangers do not advance to the 2024 Stanley Cup Final – was converted when the Rangers were eliminated from the 2024 Stanley Cup playoffs on June 1, 2024.
  43. The Ottawa Senators' fourth-round pick will go to the Chicago Blackhawks as the result of a trade on February 22, 2023, that sent future considerations to Ottawa in exchange for Nikita Zaitsev, a second-round pick in 2023 and this pick.
  44. The Philadelphia Flyers' fourth-round pick will go to the Anaheim Ducks as the result of a trade on June 23, 2025, that sent Trevor Zegras to Philadelphia in exchange for Ryan Poehling, a second-round pick in 2025 and this pick.
  45. The Pittsburgh Penguins' fourth-round pick will go to the Nashville Predators as the result of a trade on March 5, 2025, that sent Tommy Novak and Luke Schenn to Pittsburgh in exchange for Michael Bunting and this pick.
  46. The San Jose Sharks' fourth-round pick will go to the Carolina Hurricanes as the result of a trade on January 16, 2026, that sent Chicago's fifth-round pick in 2027 to Carolina in exchange for Kyle Masters and this pick.
  47. The Tampa Bay Lightning's fourth-round pick will go to the Boston Bruins as the result of a trade on June 28, 2025, that sent Detroit's fourth-round pick in 2025 to Tampa Bay in exchange for this pick.
  48. The Toronto Maple Leafs' fourth-round pick will go to the Columbus Blue Jackets as the result of a trade on November 30, 2024, that sent David Jiricek and a fifth-round pick in 2025 to Minnesota in exchange for Daemon Hunt, a conditional first-round pick in 2025, Colorado's third-round pick in 2026, a second-round pick in 2027, and this pick.
  49. : Minnesota previously acquired this pick as the result of a trade on March 8, 2024, that sent Connor Dewar to Toronto in exchange for Dmitry Ovchinnikov and this pick.
  50. The Vegas Golden Knights' fourth-round pick will go to the Washington Capitals as the result of a trade on March 5, 2024, that sent Anthony Mantha to Vegas in exchange for a second-round pick in 2024 and this pick.
  51. The Winnipeg Jets' fourth-round pick will go to the New Jersey Devils as the result of a trade on March 8, 2024, that sent Colin Miller to Winnipeg in exchange for this pick.