2026 NHL Draft

[Picker of Cherries]

Cam Robinson was saying he heard the Canucks are still debating between Stenberg, Malhotra and Verhoeff.
With Todd Harvey being particularly high on Verhoeff.

No mention of my pick Carson Carels

[Cousin Strawberry]

I don't think there's a bad pick out of any of those 3. All have fantastic upside and have trended very well to this point.

My gut tells me Stenberg is there and they can't resist though. Would love if they can get that 4th pick out of Chicago and snag 2 of them though. If they took Malhotra and Verhoeff that would be an excellent way to kick off a rebuild

[Ronning's Ghost]

I'm not saying I'm certain that, in five years time, it won't be clear that Malhotra was far and away the best pick available at 3, and the talent distribution curve was such that any other scenario would have been far less advantageous. That outcome is well withing the realm of possibility.

BUT, I am pretty certain that Mr. Aquilini really wants Malhotra, so if the Canucks did anything else, in the short term, it would be a comforting sign that the ownership/management group has adopted the policy of deferring to management in questions of on-ice personel.

[Lancer]

I’m warming up to Malhotra with all the scouts’ comments on the kid as a third pick overall. Nobody’s calling him a reach at 3. Caleb doesn’t carry the flags that Virtanen or Juolevi had at their drafts. It’s just that those picks preceded other teams picking the likes of Nylander and Tkachuk right afterwards. Just afraid that management will draft an eventual 3C, while Chicago takes off with a falling Stenberg as a top-line winger.

If the younger Malhotra turns out to be a younger Jordan Staal, that’s not a bad grab at 3. If he turns out to be Manny 2.0, it will not look good on the organization, no matter how much character or leadership the kid has.

[Cousin Strawberry]

Malhotra really upped his game in the playoffs and outplayed 18y/o centers on his team Jet Luckenko and Jake O'Brien taken high in the first round the year before

He could very easily end up the best player taken out of the top prospects of this class.

[Picker of Cherries]

McKenna to get a big salary star with lots of points.
Carels to win cups.

And Stenberg?

Had a chat with AI on this one. I think I agree with this order:

To rank them for “who contributes most to winning a Stanley Cup”, I’m weighting:
ability to drive play at 5v5 in playoffs
defensive reliability under pressure
scalability (can they play up/down lineup or pair)
transition impact (huge in modern playoff hockey)
not just ceiling, but “can this player survive a 7-game grind”
This is not pure talent ranking—it’s playoff utility.

Rank Order (Cup Contribution Projection)

1) Keaton Verhoeff → Shea Weber / Aaron Ekblad archetype
This is the highest-impact profile because elite right-shot, top-pair defenders drive entire playoff ecosystems.
can tilt matchups every other shift
physical deterrent in tight games
matchup flexibility (hard minutes, shutdown role)
huge special teams value (PK especially)
Why #1: in Cup runs, true top-pair defensemen are rarer and more structurally valuable than forwards.

2) Carson Carels → John Carlson / Alex Pietrangelo type
This is your “silent Cup driver” archetype.
stabilizes puck exits under pressure
plays 22–25 minutes in all situations
elite decision-making under forecheck stress
reduces chaos (huge in playoffs)
Why #2: teams win Cups with this exact profile as their second or first pairing anchor, depending on roster.

3) Caleb Malhotra → Bo Horvat / Ryan O’Reilly type
This is a classic playoff center.
wins dirty-area battles
can flip momentum shifts
matchup center capability
net-front and cycle reliability
Why #3: not flashy, but extremely “series-proof” down the middle.

4) Ivar Stenberg → Nico Hischier / William Karlsson type
High-end two-way center/wing hybrid value.
low-mistake playoff player
can be trusted vs top lines
strong puck management under pressure
flexible deployment
Why #4: very valuable, but slightly less “matchup-breaking” than elite D or heavy centers.

5) Gavin McKenna → Sam Reinhart / Claude Giroux type
Highest offensive ceiling, but slightly less structural playoff control than the others.
elite skill and finishing IQ
can swing games offensively
power-play driver potential
but less matchup control at 5v5 vs elite checking teams
Why #5: still a top-line engine, but Cup-winning teams usually rely more on defense/center depth to survive long series.

Final Tier Logic

Tier 1 (Cup engines)
Verhoeff
Carels

Tier 2 (Series stabilizers)
Malhotra
Stenberg

Tier 3 (Game-breaker offense)
McKenna

Key takeaway (important)
This ranking is not talent order.
It’s closer to:
“Who most reliably survives and influences a 7-game playoff series against elite opposition?”
That’s why the defensemen and matchup center rise above the pure offensive driver.

[Megaterio Llamas]

That;s an interesting AI dive, PoC.

Thanks.

[Meds]

Cherries, you realize that you’ve just told Topper he’s smarter than AI, right?



Seriously though, that was interesting. Definitely gives one pause.

[donlever]

Saw an unnamed scout said the following a while back:

Verhoeff - as CP's AI states above (dibs)

McKenna - ceiling Kane floor Keller

Stenberg - ceiling Rantanen floor Lehkonen

Carels - ceiling Hamilton floor Sanheim

Reid - ceiling Sanderson floor Hanifin

Malhotra - ceiling Horvat floor Lundell

[Meds]

If Malhotra’s ceiling is Horvat, nobody should be burning a top-5 pick on him.

[Ronning's Ghost]

Had a chat with AI on this one. I think I agree with this order:

I believed it until the AI agreed with me.

Now I have serious doubts.

I think Verhoeff will be available at 3. He'd be a popular choice on this board.

I'd like to know what the real scouts use to make their determinations. I hope it's more technical than the things we talk about.

Edit after Lever's post (and now Mëds'): I like Horvat, but I'd hope to do better with a #3OA. OTOH, it's not guaranteed that there is better in this draft year.

[donlever]

Yeah...as I've said from day 1.

I'm taking Verhoeff.

[Meds]

Yeah...as I've said from day 1.

I'm taking Verhoeff.

Based on recent rankings, I think he's available at 5 or 6.

My only concern with him is that he's fallen down the rankings over the last 3 or 4 months. I write most of that off to the fact that he's 17 years old and playing with men in the NCAA.