As the Stanley Cup Playoffs roll into high gear, half of the league’s fans are already turning their attention to the 2026 NHL Draft Lottery on May 5 and, then, to the actual 2026 NHL Draft in June. Which makes now prime season for NHL mock drafts to grab our attention and get us talking.
NHL.com deputy managing editor Adam Kimelman and senior draft writer Mike G. Morreale put together a mock draft with each of them making all 32 selections in the first round. It’s interesting on a number of levels. They’re consistent with most of the rest of the world: the first two picks are Gavin McKenna and Ivar Stenberg. I had those two going 1-2 in my most recent mock draft.
Both Kimelman and Morreale have the Chicago Blackhawks selecting Stenberg in their mock draft. Here’s what each of them wrote about the pick:
Kimelman:
Stenberg (5-11, 183) had 33 points (11 goals, 22 assists) this season, the fifth-most by an 18-year-old in the SHL and the most since Daniel Sedin (42) and Henrik Sedin (34) in 1998-99. He’s an offensive dynamo who can drive play to create opportunities for others or finish chances and he’s reliable defensively. With young centers Connor Bedard and Anton Frondell in place in Chicago, Stenberg would be an ideal playmaker to pair with either of them.
Morreale:
With elite awareness and decision making, Stenberg exhibits a lot of confidence and swagger and is very difficult to knock off the puck. The left wing impressed at World Juniors for gold medal-winning Sweden, finishing with 10 points (four goals, six assists) in seven games including a goal and two assists in a 4-2 win against Czechia in the championship game.
Those comments are great to file away for May 5 as Blackhawks fans cross their fingers that mock drafts now and the final order of selections in the first round stay true — at least in the top two spots.
However, as Tankathon tells us, the Blackhawks have a 72.4 percent chance of picking third (30.7) or fourth (41.7). Which means considering the next few selections can be important as we consider mock drafts from other folks as they come out in the coming weeks.
Mock Draft Next-Best Players Available
So, who are the best players available after McKenna and Stenberg? Here’s how Kimelman and Morreale have the next six selections coming off the board (and my own from this weekend’s mock draft for the sale of comparison):
KimelmanMorrealeBamford (BN)3. New York RangersAlberts Šmits, LHDCarson Carels, LHDCarson Carels, LHD4. Calgary FlamesChase Reid, RHDAlberts Šmits, LHDKeaton Verhoeff, RHD5. Toronto Maple LeafsCaleb Malhotra, CChase Reid, RHDChase Reid, RHD6. Seattle KrakenCarson Carels, LHDKeaton Verhoeff, RHDAlberts Šmits, LHD7. Winnipeg JetsKeaton Verhoeff, RHDCaleb Malhotra, CCaleb Malhotra, C8. Florida PanthersDaxon Rudolph, RHDDaxon Rudolph, RHDViggo Björck, CAs you can see — and as we’ve talked about for some time now here — the next 3-6 picks following the No. 2 spot in the draft are up for debate, but it looks like we’re going to have a run on defensemen. Morreale and I agree on the next four selections being defensemen, and even have Carels and Reid in the same spots. Mike and I also agree on Malhotra at No. 7 overall. Thanks, Mike!
Interestingly, both NHL.com writers have a big right-handed defenseman going to the Florida Panthers at No. 8 overall, while I have a talented center from Sweden. My mock draft is the only one of the three that has a fourth forward coming off the board in the first eight picks; Kimelman and Morreale have five of the first eight selections coming on the blue line.
Late First Rounders to Consider
With the Blackhawks owning two of the first five picks in the second round, it’s also wise to consider players who are coming off the board with the final few selections of the first round in mock drafts. Here are the final five picks in the first round by Kimelman and Morreale:
KimelmanMorreale28. Malte Gustafsson, LHDMalte Gustafsson, LHD29.Marcus Nordmark, RWBrooks Rogowski, C30.Markus Ruck, CWilliam Håkansson, LHD31.Brooks Rogowski, CMarkus Ruck, C32.Ryder Cali, CAlexander Command, CI didn’t worry about the team names being included here because: a) that can change as the playoffs progress, and b) at this stage I’m more interested in the prospects named.
In my mock draft, I had the Blackhawks selected Markus Ruck with the pick they acquired from Toronto at No. 37 overall (and his twin brother, Liam Ruck, at No. 34). The stock of both Ruck brothers is climbing right now, so that range appears to be appropriate for a mock draft.
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