Islanders Draft Malte Gustafsson 13th Overall

With the 13th pick in the 2026 NHL Entry Draft, the New York Islanders have selected Malte Gustafsson from HV71 of the Swedish Hockey League (SHL).  

About Malte Gustafsson

The 2026 NHL Draft class is full of quality defensive prospects, especially near the top of the draft. With as many great options as there seem to be, it probably shouldn’t come as a shock that a couple of them did not get the attention they probably deserve.

Malte Gustafsson, the native of Väckelsång, Sweden, is one of those guys who flew under the public’s radar leading up to the draft, despite being consistently ranked as a top 20 pick in this class.

He split his season between the under-20 junior level and the professional level with HV71. At the pro level, he showed he can compete and still use his 6-foot-4, 203-pound frame to his advantage against grown men, and at the junior level, with more opportunity to be a leader on the back end, he showed some offensive ability, posting 12 points (four goals, eight assists) in 19 games.

On the international stage, Gustafsson also had a great showing with Sweden at the Hlinka-Gretzky Cup, posting six points (two goals, five assists) in five games.

At the NHL Combine, he described himself as “A big two-way defender” that “likes to use my size, my length to shut down other players.” He also said he loves to “play tough, be physical, use my skating and play all situations.” He also mentioned taking inspiration from Cale Makar, Quinn Hughes and fellow Swede, Gustav Forsling, even though he said he “wouldn’t say I’m similar to them.”

He has confirmed he will be back in the SHL next season. However, at the next level, he projects to be a top-four defenseman who will kill penalties and has some offensive upside. Because of his size and his well-developed defensive and physical game, the floor is high for Gustafsson. Add in the offensive side, and his ceiling is also incredibly high.

THW Prospect Profile Excerpt

He has great gap control and patrols passing lanes extremely well. He knows where to go to force turnovers in the neutral zone and his own zone, and he has the skating ability to make those plays. He is an aggressive rush defender, and it usually works.

His physicality is also superb. He stands at a towering 6-foot-4, and he uses his frame well, delivering bone-crushing hits down the middle. He isn’t overly aggressive, but he’s good at using his body at the right time. His physicality and intelligence make him a pest in the neutral zone and in his own zone.

With the puck on his stick, he’s skillful in baiting people in and getting the puck out of his zone on outlet passes.

He’s also shown incredible year-to-year development. The great edge work and physicality weren’t at their current levels in 2024-25. He also improved in carrying the puck. He had a habit of carrying the puck into too much pressure and trusting in his puck-handling a little too much last season, but he definitely got better in 2025-26.

Offensively, he’s pretty solid, but there are a few knocks to his game. His shot isn’t super developed, although that’s not as big of a deal for a defenseman like him.

Continue reading our full player profile here.

How This Affects the Islanders’ Plans

This pick needed to be a defenseman, with four of their six defensemen signed to multi-year contracts being 30 years old or older, and the Islanders are getting another exciting one in Gustafsson. It adds to Matthew Schaefer and potentially Kashawn Aitcheson, the Islanders’ other first-round pick in 2025. All three of these guys are very versitaile, which should mitigate the concerns of the collection of left-handed defensemen.

Gustafsson comes with a pro-ready body. It may not be long before we see all three of these guys playing on the Islanders’ blue line together.