Blue Jackets Have History on Their Side With 14th Pick in 2026 NHL Draft

The Columbus Blue Jackets came out of the draft lottery with the 14th overall selection in the 2026 NHL Entry Draft, a pick they have had two times before in team history, in 2013 and last year in 2025. There is growing doubt that the Blue Jackets will actually hold onto the selection, but may try to trade it in a growingly more expensive unrestricted free agent class.

However, for the sake of the exercise, we will do a deep dive into the history of the 14th-overall selection and how the Blue Jackets have used the pick in the past. While it is not a top-five selection, as the Blue Jackets have had three times in the past five years, there is still plenty of talent available at the pick, as they landed Jackson Smith at pick 14 in 2025.

The time they drafted 14th overall previously, in 2013, they used that pick on Alexander Wennberg, a Swedish center who went on to play for the Blue Jackets for the first six seasons of his career. In his 415 games with Columbus, he scored 40 goals and recorded 201 points.

Smith has yet to play for the Blue Jackets, as he just completed his freshman season with Penn State, and was a star for the Nittany Lions this season, earning All-Big Ten honors. He is well on his way to becoming a future star with the NHL club in a few short years.

Solid NHL Players Who Have Come From Pick 14

There have been a few great players from the 2000s who have been drafted in the 14th slot in the NHL Entry Draft. The biggest name on the list is Boston Bruins defenseman Charlie McAvoy, who was selected in the 2016 Draft. Other big names include Brent Seabrook in 2003 to the Chicago Blackhawks and Jaden Schwartz in 2010 to the St. Louis Blues.

The 14th overall slot has produced more than a few great players over the course of the draft’s history, and surprisingly, you can find some pretty consistent middle-six forwards and top-four defensemen. Jake DeBrusk in 2015, Kevin Shattenkirk in 2007, and Joel Farabee in 2018 are some others, just to name a few.

Got our spot in Buffalo!

We've secured the 14th overall pick in this year's Draft Lottery and hold 7 total picks in the 2026 NHL Draft.

Full Details ➡️ https://t.co/gdJzs0kJ77

CBJ x @apexpros1 pic.twitter.com/849MZOa46u

— Columbus Blue Jackets (@BlueJacketsNHL) May 5, 2026

How the Blue Jackets plan to handle that pick will be extremely interesting and can really set up the rest of their offseason, as there are so many different ways it could be used. They could package it with a younger player or prospect to try to move up, or it could be intended to move back in the draft, and they land some extra compensation to move off the spot at 14.

If the Blue Jackets keep the pick, there are a lot of positions they could use it on, and what might be the best fit is up for debate. They could be interested in adding another two-way center to play with Cayden Lindstrom and Adam Fantilli, which would give them depth down the middle. They could also add another shutdown defenseman to help go along with a lot of offensive-minded defenseman already on the roster, and in the pipeline of prospects coming.

After a massive swing and miss on David Jiricek, who was drafted sixth overall in 2022 with the idea of being the shutdown defenseman to play alongside Zach Werenski for years to come, they could look to swing at another big shutdown blueliner. Or, they could look to add a big-time scoring winger with proven production all throughout their junior career, which would fill a big need for goal scoring on this team.

Best Fits for Columbus

Following a home run pick with Smith in last year’s draft, the Blue Jackets will have to find a way to recreate that magic. Three prospects would be home runs for Columbus at 14th this season: a high-upside defenseman, a power forward, and a two-way center.

My personal favorite for the Blue Jackets would be to double-dip on defensemen in back-to-back drafts with their top pick, and I really like the fit for Daxon Rudolph from the Western Hockey League’s Prince Albert Raiders. He is a big guy with NHL-level size, 6-foot-3, 205 pounds, already is a great decision maker, and has a very high upside offensively as a right shot defenseman to play with Werenski in the future. His style would mesh very well with Smith, Werenski, and Denton Mateychuk to form a very solid core group defensively.

Rudolph had 28 goals and 78 points in 68 regular season games for Prince Albert this season, and added another nine goals and 23 points in 15 playoff games as well. He would be a great addition and infusion to a Blue Jackets pipeline that feels like it is starting to run dry with talent.

Another prospect who could help retool the Blue Jackets in a very quick manner would be Adam Novotny from the Ontario Hockey League’s Peterborough Petes. He is the truest definition of a power forward, and for a team that hasn’t had a true, offensively gifted power forward since Rick Nash, this could be a revelation for this team.

This past season in the OHL, Novotny recorded 34 goals in 58 games and might also be one of the most well-rounded prospects in this entire draft pool. He was once thought to be a sniper, but has been physically hounding the opposition on the forecheck, and has really stepped up his two-way game. If the Blue Jackets don’t want to wait a long time for a prospect to be ready for NHL action, one of the most NHL-ready players in this class is Novotny.

Four points tonight for 34-year-old Charlie Coyle, who is now scoring at almost a 70-point pace. Very well might be the best C on the market this summer that someone will surely overpay. #CBJ

— Michael Amato (@amato_mike) March 18, 2026

Finally, if they do in fact lose Charlie Coyle this offseason, a big focus might be to try and get better down the middle, and that could be done by selecting Oliver Suvanto of Tappara from Liiga. He is a bigger two-way center who makes a big impact at both ends of the ice. His offensive numbers won’t wow you, but he is a 6-foot-3, 209-pound center who is only 17-years-old and is a complete all-around player.

He could bring a steadying presence to a group of offensively minded players and allow them to push the play while he covers for them on the back end, and he is a true difference maker on the ice. He is the type of player who could be a perennial Selke Trophy favorite if he is in the right situation.

The whole draft unfolds on June 26 and 27 at KeyBank Center in Buffalo, New York. The first round will be Friday at 7 p.m. ET, and Rounds 2-7 will happen on Saturday, starting at Noon ET. The Blue Jackets own seven picks over the seven rounds.