2026 NHL Draft: Live Tracker

First Round
Second Round
Third Round
Fourth Round
Fifth Round
Sixth Round
Seventh Round

After months of preparation, the 2026 NHL Entry Draft is finally here. Like last year, the NHL will host a decentralized draft, with fans and top prospects gathering in Buffalo’s KeyBank Center, while the general managers, scouts, and other personnel remain in their home bases and will submit their picks remotely. Last year’s event had plenty of issues, so it will be interesting to see what the league learned and what they will change for 2026.

Gavin McKenna is projected to be the first overall pick, even with Ivar Stenberg and Chase Reid close on his heels. The Toronto Maple Leafs’ surprising win in the draft lottery likely won’t change that, as McKenna could be just what Auston Matthews needs to rebound as the NHL’s most dangerous goal-scorer. After him, though, it’s anyone’s guess as to how things shake out after the flurry of moves leading up to Friday. Stenberg, Reid, and Caleb Malhotra are the next best options, followed by a cohort of top-tier defencemen.

American Wyatt Cullen has had a spectacular rise after his U18 World Junior performance, as has defenceman Malte Gustafsson, and both now look like potential top-10 picks. Ethan Belchetz and Viggo Björck could also get some top-10 consideration, although they are on opposite ends of the size spectrum; Belchetz stands an impressive 6-foot-5, while Björck is just 5-foot-9.

As we have done in previous years, the Live Draft Tracker is back at The Hockey Writers. The tracker will be updated after each and every pick throughout the first and second days of the draft (all seven rounds!). Be sure to check back regularly to see which prospects go to your favourite NHL team.

Make sure to refresh (F5 or CMD + R) throughout the event to see the most recent updates

First Round

Pick	Team	Position	Player	Junior Team
1		LW	Gavin McKenna	Penn State (NCAA)
2		LW	Ivar Stenberg	Frölunda HC (SHL)
3		C	Caleb Malhotra	Brantford Bulldogs (OHL)
4		D	Daxon Rudolph	Prince Albert Raiders (WHL)
5		D	Alberts Šmits	EHC München (DEL)
6		D	Carson Carels	Prince George Cougars (WHL)
7		D	Chase Reid	Soo Greyhounds (OHL)
8		C	Viggo Bjorck	Djurgårdens IF (SHL)
9		D	Keaton Verhoeff	North Dakota (NCAA)
10		LW	Wyatt Cullen	USA U18 (NTDP)
11		C	Tynan Lawrence	Boston University (NCAA)
12		C	Alexander Command	Örebro HK U20 (Nationell)
13		D	Malte Gustafsson	HV71 (SHL)
14		LW	Oscar Hemming	Boston College (NCAA)
15		RW	Nikita Klepov	Saginaw Spirit (OHL)
16		C	Maddox Dagenais	Quebec Remparts (QMJHL)
17		LW	Ethan Belchetz	Windsor Spitfires (OHL)
18		C	Oliver Suvanto	Tappara (Liiga)
19		RW	Elton Hermansson	MoDo (HockeyAllsvenskan)
20		C	Ilia Morozov	Miami-Ohio (NCAA)
21		D	Ryan Lin	Vancouver Giants (WHL)
22		RW	Liam Ruck	Medicine Hat Tigers (WHL)
23		LW	J.P. Hurlbert	Kamloops Blazers (WHL)
24		LW	Adam Novotny	Peterborough Petes (OHL)
25		RW	Jonas Lagerberg Hoen	Leksands IF U20 (Nationell)
26		RW	Gleb Pugachyov	Chaika Nizhny Novgorod (MHL)
27		D	Maxim Sokolovskii	London Knights (OHL)
28		LW	Marcus Nordmark	Djurgårdens IF (SHL)
29		D	Juho Piiparinen	Tappara (Liiga)
30		C	Jack Hextall	Youngstown Phantoms (USHL)
31		D	Tommy Bleyl	Moncton Wildcats (QMJHL)
32		RW	Jaxon Cover	London Knights (OHL)

Second Round

Pick	Team	Position	Player	Junior Team
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
58
59
60
61
62
63			forfeited
64

Third Round

Pick	Team	Position	Player	Junior Team
65
66
67
68
69
70
71
72
73
74
75
76
77
78
79
80
81
82
83
84
85
86
87
88
89
90
91
92
93
94
95
96

Fourth Round

Pick	Team	Position	Player	Junior Team
97
98
99
100
101
102
103
104
105
106
107
108
109
110
111
112
113
114
115
116
117
118
119
120
121
122
123
124
125
126
127
128

Fifth Round

Pick	Team	Position	Player	Junior Team
129
130
131
132
133
134
135
136
137
138
139
140
141
142
143
144
145
146
147
148
149
150
151
152
153
154
155
156
157
158
159
160

Sixth Round

Pick	Team	Position	Player	Junior Team
161
162
163
164
165
166
167
168
169
170
171
172
173
174
175
176
177
178
179
180
181
182
183
184
185
186
187
188
189
190
191
192

Seventh Round

Pick	Team	Position	Player	Junior Team
193
194
195
196
197
198
199
200
201
202
203
204
205
206
207
208
209
210
211
212
213
214
215
216
217
218
219
220
221
222
223
224