4 Teams Under the Most Pressure at the 2026 NHL Draft

The NHL Draft is important for every team, but it’s not equally important for all of them. Certain franchises in particular, thanks to their results this season or the past few seasons, need to nail their picks to avoid tumbling down the standings or repeating their past mistakes. Let’s take a look at the organizations under the most pressure to have a successful draft a few weeks from now in Buffalo.

Edmonton Oilers

The Edmonton Oilers are at a crossroads. After back-to-back losses in the Stanley Cup Final, they took a step back this season with 93 points and a first-round loss to the Anaheim Ducks, marking their seventh straight season in which they made the playoffs without winning a championship. It was their first season since 2019-20 in which they did not register at least 100 points (or win at a 100-point pace in the case of shortened seasons), leading to the dismissal of head coach Kris Knoblauch.

This could be a one-off dip or a sign of decline for Edmonton’s core. It’s still too early to tell, but their ability to get back to the level of previous seasons is hampered by the fact that they currently hold just nine selections over the next two drafts, including no first-rounders in either.

Now, Connor McDavid’s future with the franchise is uncertain, and the Oilers have work to do to retain the best player they’ve had since Wayne Gretzky’s departure. They want to convince him to stay in Edmonton long-term, while simultaneously showing their fanbase that this group is capable of finally breaking through and winning a title. Their lack of first-round picks leaves them without a lot of wiggle room. However, nailing those later-round choices — or trading into the first round and nailing that — could give them a good starting point in their efforts to get their first Cup since 1990.

Dallas Stars

The Dallas Stars have been a consistent presence in the playoffs for the past decade, but that hasn’t resulted in any championships. Following their loss to the Minnesota Wild in the first round of the playoffs, they find themselves in an uncertain position. Between the Colorado Avalanche’s dominant regular season and the Wild’s ascendance upon the acquisition of Quinn Hughes, the Stars are at risk of peaking as the third-best team in the Central Division over the next several seasons.

Several key Stars forwards will be free agents this offseason, headlined by Jamie Benn, Jason Robertson and Mavrik Bourque. Like Edmonton, they don’t currently have a first-round pick at this year’s draft.

The Stars want to prove that they haven’t maxed out with their current roster, a task that has several obstacles standing in its way. This draft could be the one to add the pieces that gets them over the top, or the one where they miss badly enough to eventually split up this squad.

Winnipeg Jets

Following an eight-season run featuring seven playoff appearances and a Presidents’ Trophy, the Winnipeg Jets experienced a much tougher season in 2025-26 with 82 points. Adding to their frustration, their former star Nikolaj Ehlers has been a key piece of the Carolina Hurricanes’ first Stanley Cup Final appearance since 2006 after he departed Winnipeg last offseason.

The Jets still have a lot of key players under expensive long-term contracts, and they want those deals to remain useful rather than bloated albatrosses. A good draft, beginning with the eighth overall pick, will give them a chance to remain contenders rather than fall off completely. They can add the supplementary pieces they need to remain in contention and avoid the dangers of becoming too top-heavy, which they currently face, or their next stars who could make it easier to part with those current players. With the right selections, they can avoid the fall-off that this season suggests is at risk of happening.

New York Rangers

Very few recent team declines have been as dramatic as that of the New York Rangers. They went from winning the Presidents’ Trophy to finishing with the third-worst record in the NHL in just two seasons. During that time, they traded a number of key players, including Jacob Trouba, Chris Kreider and Artemi Panarin. Several more, such as Braden Schneider, Adam Fox and Vincent Trocheck, are currently in trade rumors.

Given that the Rangers play in one of North America’s most scrutinized media markets, they have even more pressure to succeed than an average team. While unfortunate lottery luck dropped them to the fifth pick in the draft, they still have a chance to take a top-tier player and add to their prospect pool.

If the Rangers can find a positive in their recent struggles, it’s that their organizational depth has grown and will continue to grow thanks to all the aforementioned trades and potential trades. They’ll need to use this draft and any corresponding moves to demonstrate the direction of their franchise and get back on track in a city that expects winning.

Draft Serves as Pivot Point

A good draft does not make for a complete offseason. Any of these four teams would need to follow it up by making smart moves via free agency and trade. But for all of them, the draft is exceptionally important. They will indicate the directions that the franchises plan to go, set a tone for the rest of their offseasons and make an impact on their long-term futures, which seem highly uncertain right now. They’ll be worth paying extra attention to at that time, because they could end up changing the direction of the entire NHL.