The opening round of the 2026 NHL Entry Draft is complete, and the Calgary Flames came away with two prospects who fit the identity the organization continues to build under general manager Craig Conroy.
Carels enjoyed a breakout 2025-26 season, posting 20 goals and 73 points in 58 games. His offensive explosion was the second-highest single-season point total by a defenceman in Prince George franchise history and solidified his status as a projected top-pairing NHL blueliner.
A smooth skater with elite offensive instincts, Carels excels at moving the puck, driving play in transition and creating scoring opportunities from the back end. His all-around game also earned him a spot on Canada’s World Junior Championship roster last season, where he was one of the youngest defencemen to represent the country, ever.
The Manitoba native also made headlines on draft day for a different reason. Rather than attending the event in Buffalo, Carels remained home helping on his family’s farm in Cypress River, a decision that reflects the grounded, hardworking mentality that appealed to Calgary’s scouting staff.
Carels is committed to the University of North Dakota next season, where he’ll continue his development before making the jump to professional hockey.
The second cousin of former NHL goaltender and executive Ron Hextall, Jack has built his own reputation as a reliable two-way centre who combines size, physicality and offensive potential. His ability to play responsibly on both sides of the puck while competing hard on every shift made him an attractive fit for the Flames.
Hextall is committed to Michigan State University next season, where he will continue to develop his game against top collegiate competition.
Carels brings dynamic offensive ability and top-pairing potential to Calgary’s defensive pipeline, while Hextall gives the organization a promising centre with the size, compete level and two-way game that are difficult to find.
More than anything, both selections reinforce the qualities the Flames continue to value: skill, leadership, character and an unwavering work ethic. If those traits translate as expected, Calgary may look back on the opening night of the 2026 NHL Draft as another important step in building its new core.
But general manager Mathieu Darche said they were anything but.
"We didn't have any trades, but I can tell you, we haven't been quiet the last week," Darche told us on Zoom following the first round. "Basically, I've had my phone attached to my ear, and you're kicking tires, teams are calling, you're listening. That's my job to listen to anybody who calls. I've called a bunch of teams.
"Was I in on some of these trades? Yeah, I had a lot of discussions with these teams, some of which could be other players, no trade clauses -- it could be various factors that we just didn't get anything through this time."
Darche, who selected left-shot defenseman Malte Gustafsson at No. 13, told us he tried to move higher up the draft board a few times.
"I did try to move up a few times, depending on who was available, and that didn't go through," Darche said. "And there's a few teams, if my guy's not there, I might move back.
"But it's funny because it's rare that...every year we have our list, and it's rare that usually in the top 10, that all your top 10, or almost all your top 10, are not all our top 10, because we had Malte rated very high, but it was somewhat predictable, not necessarily where they went, but which were the top 15 guys. It was somewhat more predictable than other years, from my experience."
Trying to improve the team is a 24-hour gig.
"Even tonight on the way home, I'm sure I'll be on the phone," Darche said. "Tomorrow, we'll be on the phone all day through the draft, and Sunday again. We don't leave any stone unturned. Sometimes, it doesn't go your way and there are times you might want the player, but do you want the contract that comes with it?
"There's a lot of factors that factor in whether we have a trade or not, but we've been extremely active on the phone, but just nothing has materialized so far."
Here are the winners and losers from the first day of the NHL draft:
WINNERS
New York Rangers
The Rangers traded defenseman K'Andre Miller before last season and forward Artemi Panarin during the season and missed the playoffs for the second year in a row. But they added some potential replacements at the draft. Dorofeyev has goal-scoring ability, totaling 72 goals over the last two seasons, and agreed to a seven-year, $77 million extension. Draft pick Alberts Smits is a big defenseman who played for Latvia at the Olympics, world championships and world junior championships.
San Jose Sharks
They kept everyone guessing before the draft and took skilled forward Stenberg with the No. 2 overall pick. Even though they passed on a defenseman, they landed a good one in Keaton Verhoeff with the No. 9 pick. They moved up six spots in a trade to draft Ryan Lin, another solid defenseman, at No. 21.
Caleb Malhotra
He went No. 3 overall and gets a chance to play for his dad, new Vancouver Canucks coach Manny Malhotra.
Toronto Maple Leafs
Buffalo has been a good draft site for the Maple Leafs. Ten years ago, they took Auston Matthews No. 1 overall, and top pick McKenna has an opportunity to put his imprint on the franchise, too.
LOSERS
Vegas Golden Knights
The defending Western Conference champions have success because they trade futures for name players. But because of a salary cup crunch, they traded Dorofeyev, their best homegrown player, for futures. The move at least gave the Golden Knights a rare opportunity to draft in the first round, but they traded down twice before finally selecting Juho Piiparinen with the 29th overall pick.
Chase Reid drops
He had been mentioned as high as No. 2 if the Sharks wanted to draft a defenseman. General manager Mike Grier hinted at the possibility before the draft. But the Sharks took Stenberg and Reid fell to No. 7 with the Seattle Kraken. That's the same Kraken team that has made the playoffs once in its existence and reportedly had its $15 million-a-year contract offer turned down by the Dallas Stars' Jason Robertson.
Columbus Blue Jackets
During the draft, TSN's Pierre LeBrun reported that the Blue Jackets were listening to offers on Norris Trophy winner Zach Werenski. ESPN's Kevin Weekes later reported that Kirill Marchenko, the team's leading goal scorer, might not be willing to re-sign beyond the end of his contract. That's not a good sign for a team that has missed the playoffs for six consecutive seasons and whose effort down the stretch was questioned by coach Rick Bowness.
Production drags on
ESPN got rid of last year's worst feature, the virtual room in which prospects talked to their new teams. But having drafted players sitting on a couch during interviews wasn't much better. Even though the trades were exciting, they caused the show to drag. It lasted four hours.
The Chicago Blackhawks didn't make a single pick in the 2026 NHL Draft's first round on Friday night. That is the first time that this has happened in the Kyle Davidson era.
Their originally awarded pick, 4th overall, was traded to the Buffalo Sabres in exchange for Bowen Byram. In the past, Davidson has found a way to make multiple selections in the first round. This year, nothing.
There is plenty of more time to make selections, however, as rounds 2-7 will take place on Saturday morning into the afternoon. Lots of good players with high ceilings are still available, and diamonds in the rough are always out there.
It will begin with the second round at 10 AM CT. The Blackhawks are scheduled to make two selections during this time. Picks 34 and 37 are on the docket.
Of every player waiting to be taken by an NHL franchise, these 10 stick out as the best fits for the Blackhawks:
Centers
The plan is for the Chicago Blackhawks to run Connor Bedard, Anton Frondell, and Frank Nazar down the middle in 2026-27. However, you don't know how that is going to pan out until you see it in action over a long period of time.
One of them may be better suited as a wing in the future. There is also the need for depth within the organization due to injuries or lackluster performances.
If the Blackhawks are serious about taking a center in the second round, one of these three makes the most sense:
Brooks Rogowski - Oshawa
Alessandro Di Iorio - Sarnia
Rudolfs Berzkalns - Muskegon
Wings
In a perfect world, the Chicago Blackhawks are set at center for a while. They would love for those players that they have penciled in at those positions to be there for a long time. It is on the wing that they could use some tremendous improvement.
Outside of Roman Kantserov, they don't have a prospect that they are super excited about on either side of the wing. They have some veterans there like Teuvo Teravainen, Tyler Bertuzzi, and Ryan Donato, who are good players, but none of them are part of the five-year plan from this point forward.
All of these prospects available to them at that position in the second round are going to take some time, but they could help build up the top nine as the years go on:
Simas Ignatavicius - Genève-Servette HC
Casey Mutryn - USNTDP
Chase Harrington - Spokane
Mathis Preston - Vancouver
Defense
On defense, things take even longer. Look at some of the young players that the Blackhawks are already trying to develop, and you'll see examples of projects that aren't so easy.
With that said, they are certainly going to take some chances on a couple of players who may become NHL-ready down the line.
For every team in the NHL, it is a hard project worth taking on, because the reward could be the difference between sustained success and sustained failure.
With each of their early second-round picks, these three young defensemen are going to be possibilities for them:
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LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - JUNE 14: Seth Jarvis #24 of the Carolina Hurricanes hoists the Stanley Cup after the team's 3-0 victory over the Vegas Golden Knights in Game Six of the 2026 NHL Stanley Cup Final at T-Mobile Arena on June 14, 2026 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Hurricanes won the series four games to two. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Last night’s first round of the draft was a typical one for Carolina. They traded their first round pick, 31st overall, to Nashville for two picks in round two, numbers 42 and 57 overall. If nothing else changes, that would give them a total of five picks for Saturday, with a possibility to add more.
After the trade was announced, Eric Tulsky held a press conference and much was revealed.
The biggest news was that Seth Jarvis had shoulder surgery and would be out for four to six months, which of course includes the start of next season. Jarvis had shoulder issues for the past couple of years but had put off surgery for various reasons. This would apparently leave an opening for Bradly Nadeau to take his spot.
Tulsky was quick to slow that talk down. “Nothing is guaranteed”, the general manager said. Others from Chicago will be fighting to make the team as well as Nadeau and the GM could always add someone via trade or free agency. He reiterated that he is always trying to improve the team.
He was asked how he could improve a Stanley Cup winning team and he said there is always room for improvement. “When we are playing our best and no one is injured, we are incredibly tough to beat, but if we are not playing our best or someone is injured, we could be better. This year we were fortunate that we were playing our best and no one was injured.”
Some other highlights-
He would not validate any trade rumors out there and claimed that they had not yet had contract negotiations with Alexander Nikishin, the only roster player still needing a contract. There was no rush on it.
He has had conversations with Andersen but will not divulge the content of those discussions. He could be back.
Eric Robinson had knee surgery and will be out 6 to 8 weeks. Those two players are the only ones who had surgeries.
Mike Reilly might be back and/or Valimaki, Legault, and Nystrom are all possibilities for the 7th spot.
Tulsky would be comfortable with Kochetkov and Bussi in net next season.
He is not aware of anything regarding television broadcasts next season.
Saturday will be interesting. I will attend Lenovo again and will comment in a new open thread with some info about any draft selections or other Carolina related news.
On Friday night, the Philadelphia Flyers made a move that was both a surprise and perfectly expected, drafting the behemoth defenseman Maksim Sokolovskii with their first-round pick.
The surprise with Sokolovskii comes from the fact that there were increasingly long pregnant pauses in the Flyers media room; someone eventually had to take the 6-foot-7 defender.
Time between picks seemingly kept getting longer, and teams were frequently exchanging picks and striking trades with one another.
Yet, by the time the dust settled, Sokolovskii was still on the board, and the Flyers made him their first-round draft selection in the 2026 NHL Draft.
For a team that struggles to score and move pucks, though, what was the motivation behind the selection?
In the eyes of Flyers GM Danny Briere, it has everything to do with untapped potential and continued improvement throughout the past season.
"We saw him early in the season, we thought this could be a late pick for us, and then it seemed every month he just kept getting better and better and figuring out the game more and more," Briere said of Sokolovskii. "That was interesting to the point where he's going to be a first-rounder."
Sokolovskii joins a growing list of London Knights and, more generally, OHLers drafted by the Flyers in recent seasons.
Dating back to 2023, Matvei Michkov was the Flyers' last first-round pick to come from outside the Ontario league.
"It's not a secret they're one of the better organizations in the CHL. They seem to be able to build winners. There's a lot of guys that go through their program that end up in the NHL. They have a knack for raising those players to become pros," Briere added of the Knights. "For us, it's a no-brainer when we have the chance to take someone from London. It feels very comfortable."
Of course, Flyers president Keith Jones played for the London Knights many moons ago, and top prospects Denver Barkey and Oliver Bonk joined the Flyers from that organization in the 2023 draft.
The connection to the Flyers is there, and it helps that there is legitimate talent there, too.
Briere wouldn't commit to pegging Sokolovskii as a future first-, second-, or third-pair defender, but couldn't help but glow about the potential.
"Obviously, the way our development has worked the last few years. We feel confident that it's going to come. We know there's a lot of work to be done, but there's things that you can't teach, you can't change," said Briere.
"[Sokolovskii is] still going to be 6-foot-7 in two years from now, and the [physicality and aggression] that he has as well is something you can't really teach that comes naturally to him, so that's that's a big plus. The rest of his game has to round out, no doubt about it, but the progression that we saw this season leads us to believe that it'll be able to make it to the NHL. What pairing? I don't know yet. It's a little too early to tell, but he could become a top four defenseman if things fall into place."
Sokolovskii, 17, is committed to the University of Maine for the 2027-28 season, and Briere and the Flyers anticipate their new top prospect playing the 2026-27 season in the OHL again before moving on to the college ranks.
In the meantime, the Flyers are hoping that Sokolovskii will continue to learn and improve, as he did throughout the 2025-26 season with the Knights.
"His puck play was was much different, and then understanding the game. When to go, when not to go, when to go for the big hits, when not to go and sit back, those are things that along the way got better and better this past season," Briere assessed.
The Golden Knights did not, in fact, make a selection with the 2026 first-rounder they got from the Dorofeyev trade. Instead, they traded down twice.
First, the Golden Knights made a deal with the Montreal Canadiens, exchanging the 26th overall pick for the 28th overall pick, and received a 2027 third-round pick as a sweetener. The Golden Knights then traded down once again, sending the 28th overall pick to the Anaheim Ducks in exchange for the 29th overall pick and the 117th overall pick.
Finally, when the Golden Knights were on the clock for the third time, they made a selection. They used the 29th overall pick to select Finnish defenseman Juho Piiparinen from Tappara, Liiga.
The Golden Knights like their big, physical defensemen, and Piiparinen certainly fits the bill. At just 17 years of age, he is already an imposing figure, standing 6’3” and weighing in at 203 lbs.
Piiparinen, who analysts ranked as high as 17th and as low as 42nd, is a mature, mobile, right-shot defenseman. He’s a defensive defenseman who uses his range to break up plays. He’s also a decent playmaker who can consistently create offense with his breakout passes. He’s a smooth skater who can be very dangerous in transition.
Because of his diverse tool kit, it’s hard to predict how far Piiparinen is from being NHL-ready. However, it also means that his development will be an intriguing one to follow.
The San Jose Sharks will have a light day on Saturday, at least compared to Friday night.
After trading three picks to move up to 21st overall, the Sharks will only have three picks on Saturday, unless something changes. Currently, they'll next be on the clock in the fourth round. They hold the 127th overall pick, which they acquired from the Washington Capitals as a part of the Timothy Liljegren trade, but originally came from the Vegas Golden Knights.
Then, the Sharks will have a quick break, as they currently don't possess a fifth round pick. They'll be back at it with the 174th overall pick in the sixth round, before closing out their draft class with the 201st overall pick in the seventh round.
It was an eventful day for the team in teal on Friday, while there's still quite a bit of work to be done at the 2026 NHL Draft, they'll likely have a relatively calm day on Saturday by comparison
You best make us proud, HV71 ginger! | Getty Images
The Islanders made their lone pick with little fanfare on what was a never-ending first day of the draft: Malte Gustafsson, a tall, swift-skating, left-side defenseman who’s already had pro-league experience at age 17 with HV71 in Sweden, was their pick at 13th overall.
The Isles went into the draft with four picks on the second day, one each in rounds 4, 5, 6 and 7.
As for Gustafsson, the Isles had Matthew Schaefer announce the pick — a helluva lot better than having that twert Bieber do it — and though both are lefties, you could see him fitting well next to Schaefer in select situations one day:
A one-man play killer, Gustafsson cemented his status as a high-end defensive prospect by becoming a regular on HV71’s SHL team, a rare feat for a draft-eligible defender. Against his peers, he played nearly half of every game for Sweden at the under-18 championships.
His defensive game is the most translatable part of his NHL game and will allow him to be a trusted defender early in his career. He’s the ideal partner for an elite offensive defenseman because of his ability to insulate and shut down offense, be it in transition or in the defensive zone.
Gustafsson is an outstanding skater and another prospect from Sweden who played most of his season at the pro level. He’s competitive and smart. Gustafsson can be deployed in a variety of roles and trusted in all situations, but will likely only produce secondary offence at most.
A late riser with his play at the U18 worlds, Gustafsson has size, can skate, defend well and help move pucks quickly and efficiently.
Gustafsson was seen as just outside the top tier of five defensemen in this draft, though some entertained the possibility that he should be in there. The Athletic addressed that question before the draft:
There has been a lot of talk about Malte Gustafsson now entering that group of five and making it a group of six, so I thought it would be valuable to test that theory. It was split almost exactly down the middle, with seven scouts saying they don’t have a sixth D in that group and six saying that Gustafsson is now in that group for them. Among the six who had Gustafsson in that group, a majority said they’d rank him sixth, with only a couple saying they’d slot him ahead of any of the other five D. One other D got a vote for that group as well: Tommy Bleyl. A couple of scouts did wonder if their fifth-ranked D actually belonged in a tier with the other names instead of with the four in front of them as well.
To me, Gustafsson was clearly the best player available here. He’s a big, mobile defenseman who can make plays. He has really good defensive traits. He didn’t put up huge points at the J20 level or in the SHL, but I thought he was the best defenseman at the U18 World Championships. He’s a really impressive two-way player.
The other side of this is, the Islanders have quite the deep chart at left defense. So IF current prospects develop, it’s a strength to trade from as well.
Around the Draft
The 29th-overall pick the Islanders acquired from Colorado in the Brock Nelson trade continued to move around. Dealt to the Blues in the Brayden Schenn trade, the Blues packaged it with the 15th-overall pick to Anaheim for Mason McTavish. The Ducks then swapped it with Vegas in a bizarre move that allowed them to move up one spot. Anaheim selected Marcus Nordmark.
The Canucks went ahead and took Caleb Malhotra, the son of their new coach. No pressure there. [Sportsnet]
Not long for Utah: the Bruins grabbed ex-Sabre JJ Peterka from the Mammoth for two firsts. [NHL | Sportsnet]
The Rangers acquired RFA Pavel Dorofeyev from Vegas and are working on a seven-year extension. [Sportsnet]
The second day of the draft moves so fast, it’s hard to keep up. But man, it’s downright refreshing after the long, glacial slog of the first day. The Islanders, of course, don’t even pick until the fourth round, barring a trade. So stay tuned for how much they blew it/reached/stole it/found the hidden gem.
BUFFALO, NEW YORK - JUNE 26: (L-R) NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman, Gavin McKenna and Justin Bieber pose onstage after McKenna was selected first overall by the Toronto Maple Leafs during Day One of the 2026 NHL Draft at KeyBank Center on June 26, 2026 in Buffalo, New York. (Photo by Jeff Vinnick/NHLI via Getty Images)
NHLI via Getty Images
BUFFALO, N.Y. — Gavin McKenna’s nerves finally eased when lifetime Maple Leafs fan and international pop icon Justin Bieber took the NHL draft stage to announce who Toronto was selecting No. 1.
“He was looking at me and I kind of was thinking, maybe,” McKenna said with a laugh. “Crazy. Just crazy what’s going on right now.”
With most of Yukon watching and a loud presence of Maple Leafs fans in the stands, Toronto chose the Penn State left winger, validating longstanding projections of McKenna being his age group’s top prospect. The 18-year-old from Yukon’s capital of Whitehorse has been a prolific scorer on both sides of the U.S.-Canada border.
And if Bieber’s appearance and taking the stage to the artist’s song “Yukon” wasn’t enough, McKenna was welcomed to the Maple Leafs with a video message from Toronto captain Auston Matthews.
“Obviously he’s on the first line. I’m going to have to prove myself to be able to play with a player like that. But that’s my goal,” McKenna said of Matthews, who was chosen No. 1 by Toronto in the 2016 draft, which also happened to be held in Buffalo. “My game’s obviously a playmaker, he’s a shooter, so I think we could complement each other pretty well.”
McKenna represents a major plank in the Maple Leafs’ rebuilding process of a team suddenly in transition under new general manager John Chayka. Toronto finished last in the Atlantic Division last season and missed the playoffs for the first time since Matthews’ arrival.
Canucks select coach’s son, Caleb Malhotra
The draft featured dueling cheers — and boos — between large contingents of Maple Leafs and Sabres fans, several surprises, a few trades and a nice father-son moment when Vancouver selected center Caleb Malhotra with the No. 3 pick, joining a team coached by dad Manny Malhotra.
“I hugged him right after, and we were happy,” said Caleb, who is from British Columbia and finished second among OHL rookies with 84 points with Brantford last season. “It’s the best feeling in the world. I’ve never felt anything like this. And that embrace was so comforting, and I’m so glad he’s here with me as dad.”
Malhotra said his dad was not aware of the Canucks’ draft plans. And he now has bragging rights on his father in being selected four spots higher, after Manny went No. 7 to the New York Rangers in 1998.
Run on defensemen
After forwards went with the first three picks, including Sweden’s Ivar Stenberg second to San Jose, the expected run on defensemen began with five selected over the next six picks.
Buffalo selected Prince Albert blue-liner Daxon Rudolph at No. 4, followed Latvia’s Alberts Smits going fifth to the Rangers. Chase Reid, who is from Michigan, was part of that run, going seventh to Seattle as the first American-born player selected.
Smits split last season playing professionally in Finland and Germany, while also representing Latvia at the Milan Cortina Olympics. He became the highest drafted Latvian, ahead of Buffalo selecting Zemgus Girgensons 14th in 2012.
Trades and more trades
This was a much more active first round with picks traded for NHL players than the previous couple of years. The Rangers got Pavel Dorofeyev from Vegas for picks 26 and 92, and a 2028 first-rounder. Boston acquired JJ Peterka from Utah for a pair of first-rounders. And St. Louis traded two of its picks Friday night to Anaheim for Mason McTavish.
The draft opened with NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman getting booed — a draft-day tradition — as he took the stage, and was joined by Sabres forward Josh Doan and NFL Bills tackle Dion Dawkins, who referred to Bettman as his “new dawg.”
Rudolph was wowed watching his good friend McKenna being welcomed to the stage.
“To see him be selected first and with Justin Bieber and everything, it was amazing,” Rudolph said. “I just remember talking to my mom and saying. ‘Wow, this is so cool,’ as I’m sitting there on the couch waiting to be picked.”
McKenna accustomed to the spotlight
McKenna is accustomed to the spotlight, splashing on the scene by combining for 79 goals and 244 points in 133 games with Medicine Hat in the WHL. He made the jump to the NCAA last summer in a bid to challenge himself against older and more physical competition. He finished with 51 points, tied for fourth in the nation.
He became just the fifth NCAA player to go first, and third in six years, since Michigan defenseman Owen Power went No. 1 to Buffalo in 2021.
McKenna also became the fifth Yukon-born player to be selected in the draft, and the highest pick after Ottawa’s Dylan Cozens went No. 7 to Buffalo in 2019. He now heads to a metropolis that is nearly 100 times larger than Whitehorse’s population of about 39,000.
This was the NHL’s second straight decentralized draft, with teams making selections from their respective headquarters.
Decentralized draft Part II
Lacking in the new format is each draft pick joining his new team’s front office on stage. Last year, the NHL attempted to rectify that by having teams welcome their prospects by video conference call on stage at the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles. The interviews were widely panned for being awkward and glitchy, and contributing to the draft lasting nearly 4 1/2 hours.
This year the NHL had the top prospects seated with their families in what resembled a lounge area, featuring plush couches, directly in front of the stage. After being selected, each player was interviewed on a couch on stage, with the backdrop representing the team.
Roman Empire—Feb 28, 2020 - VOL. 73, Issue. 04 - Ryan Kennedy
YOU’D BE FORGIVEN IF you came out of the 2008 NHL draft in Ottawa thinking about someone other than Roman Josi. After all, this was the year of “Seen Stamkos?” when the Tampa Bay Lightning telegraphed their first overall selection of Sarnia Sting center Steven Stamkos as part of a rebranding for the franchise. And yet it was also an exciting year for defensemen, with the daring Drew Doughty, beastly Zach Bogosian and all-around excellent Alex Pietrangelo going in order after Stamkos. Heck, if you were looking for a hidden gem on the back end, you were probably intrigued by the skinny Swedish kid taken by the host Senators with the 15th overall pick – Frolunda’s Erik Karlsson.
But over at Nashville’s table, GM David Poile and his team were pleased to land Josi early in the second round with the 38th pick. (Earlier, Nashville selected Colin Wilson seventh and Chet Pickard 18th.) Poile was happy, but a little puzzled. “His name wasn’t getting mentioned, other than by our scouts,” Poile said. “You hope he’s a guy you can swoop in and get. I realize he was a second-round pick, but there wasn’t a huge amount of fanfare about him, at least in my memory. I don’t remember anyone telling me, ‘That was a great pick,’ at the time. But we were bang-on.”
Twelve years later, Josi is the captain of the Predators and a Norris Trophy candidate. Playing for a franchise that has made its name on defensemen, Josi is the top dog after years of learning from some of the best in the game. While Nashville is having a down season that saw coach Peter Laviolette fired and goaltending become an unusual weak spot, 29-year-old Josi is proving to be worth every penny of the eight-year, $72-million contract extension he signed last summer. And once it kicks in next season, he’ll still be paying dividends for a long time.
The story of Josi is the tale of development perfected. The kid from Bern, Switzerland, stayed home for two more years after the Predators drafted him, allowing him to get reps against men in his home nation’s best league and playing in multiple world juniors. He wasn’t among Nashville’s top 10 prospects in Future Watch 2009, but arrived in FW10 at fifth, then rose to third in FW11. When he came over to North America in 2010, the first thing he did was pay his dues in the AHL. “I like the way the process worked,” Poile said. “He was a young kid eager to come over, and he understood where he had to play. He went to Milwaukee, where we had a lot of good young guys at the time, then came to Nashville and played a lesser role behind guys like Ryan Suter and Shea Weber, where he learned the game and leadership.”
I DON’T REMEMBER ANYONE TELLING ME, ‘THAT WAS A GREAT PICK.’ BUT WE WERE BANG-ON– NASHVILLE GM DAVID POILE
Ah yes, Suter and Weber – they were OK for Nashville, eh? The Predators were building something special on their back end, but nothing came easy in Nashville in those days, when money from ownership was tight. Suter was a pending UFA in the summer of 2012 and ended up signing a massive 13-year deal worth $98 million with Minnesota. Soon after, Philadelphia smelled blood and tried to swipe Weber away with an offer sheet worth $110 million over 14 years. At the time, the situation looked bleak, but the Preds had a young ace up their sleeve. “Talk about timing,” Poile said. “That summer we lost Suter and matched the offer sheet on Weber. Suter was one of the top five or six defensemen in the league. People wondered how we were going to replace him, and bang, we had a replacement right there. Roman’s like a good stock. We bought low and we’re getting a very good return.”
And so, after a lockout-shortened 2012-13 campaign split between Bern and Nashville, Josi began his master class in the NHL, helped along by captain Weber. “Just watching him prepare daily for practice, for games, the way he plays the game, there were so many things I learned from him,” Josi said. “He had a huge influence on my career.”
The admiration went both ways and continues to this day, even though Weber is now with Montreal. “Really good kid, works hard,” Weber said. “I enjoyed being around him. He was very young, at the start of his career. You could see the talent there. He just needed time. As you grow as a player you get more experience and consistency and his game has grown, it speaks for itself.”
Looking back at the Predators’ 2013-14 defense corps is wild. Weber and Josi were joined by Seth Jones, Ryan Ellis and Mattias Ekholm, all of whom have become fantastic NHLers and, in the case of the first three, Norris Trophy candidates, albeit with different teams. “Roman is a special player,” said Jones, the ex-Pred and current Columbus star. “Probably twice the player now than he was when I was there. He’s grown that much. His offensive instinct was one of the best I’ve seen. We were both starting to get into our careers, and he was a great guy off the ice.”
Poile describes that time as “priceless” for Josi, as he could take as many lessons as possible from partner Weber and use them to grow. “Everybody learns from different guys,” Poile said. “You watch, you learn, you steal things from other people’s games, you see how they conduct themselves as a pro off the ice: how they dress, how they engage the community, what charitable work they do. Shea Weber was the man in Nashville, and now Roman is doing the same things.”
But Josi doesn’t just draw his mentors from hockey. Like a number of other NHL stars, he’s a huge fan of tennis icon Roger Federer. The fact both of them are Swiss surely has something to do with it, but Josi sees a true professional in Federer, and following the tennis player’s career has clearly influenced his own athletic trade. “First of all, he’s the best ever, don’t question me on that,” Josi said. “Then it’s the way he behaves. With all the success he’s had, he’s still a humble person. I’ve got to meet him a couple times, and that was definitely something that impressed me.”
When Weber was traded for P.K. Subban, Mike Fisher took the ‘C’ for a season before Josi was named captain in 2017. In determining who would wear the ‘C,’ Poile and Laviolette consulted not only each other but also a lot of people in the organization, from hockey operations to trainers and equipment staff, and the feedback all suggested Josi would make a great leader. Now, Poile sees a player who has evolved into the role and someone who is a lot more vocal than he used to be in the dressing room. “You learn a lot when you become captain,” Josi said. “Shea had a big influence, Mike Fisher, too, those were two great captains. As you go on, there are so many ups and downs, and you learn to deal with certain situations. It’s been a lot of fun and a huge honor to be captain.”
SHEA WEBER HAD A BIG INFLUENCE, MIKE FISHER, TOO, THOSE WERE TWO GREAT CAPTAINS– ROMAN JOSI
Before he earned the ‘C,’ Josi also got a taste of the ultimate prize in hockey – the Stanley Cup final. The Predators fell to Pittsburgh in six games in the spring of 2017, but the playoff run left an indelible mark on Josi, who was on the cusp of taking the next step in his career. “You realize how hard it is,” Josi said. “It’s such a long journey, but it’s such an awesome journey. The games are hard, the games are intense, there are so many momentum swings, but looking back it was unbelievable to have a run like that. It makes you want to go back and get the win this time.”
That Cup run also threw a huge spotlight on Nashville itself, where the party scene on Broadway and the car-smashing fun outside of Bridgestone Arena helped many an outsider fall in love with the city. It’s something Josi was already privileged to know about. “The fans have always been great in Nashville,” he said. “I remember the first time I played at home, I was like, ‘Wow, this is loud and the crowd is awesome.’ With us going to the Cup final, it took it to another level, and it’s definitely a hockey city. The support we get is unbelievable.”
And the city’s cultural DNA is seeping into Josi’s life as well. Coming from Switzerland, he knew nothing about country music when he arrived in Tennessee, but after years of meeting some of the genre’s biggest stars at Preds games, he’s taken a shine to it. He also found the love of his life in Nashville. Ellie Ottaway is from the suburbs of Detroit, but the fashion model moved to Nashville to study music at Belmont University. Josi and Ottaway were engaged at Christmas of 2017 and tied the knot last summer (and just to make the story even more Nashville, their venue used to be Reba McEntire’s house).
Of all the growth that has come to Josi, settling down is right up there in terms of impact. “I definitely feel like I’m at a different point in my life,” he said. “You’re married, two dogs, living a little bit outside the city, things definitely change. I love spending time at home with my wife and my dogs, it’s good.”
So the off-ice component of Josi’s life is locked in. On the ice, hope is not lost for a playoff spot. The West is wide open, and Nashville still has their solid array of blueliners who can change a game at either end. While Subban is now struggling in New Jersey, three of the D-men from the Weber era are still hanging around, making more of an impact than ever. “Most of us, Ellis and Ekholm and me, we’ve been playing together a long time,” Josi said. “We grew up together in Nashville…We have such a great group of guys and some really good defensemen.”
Josi is having the best season of his career, averaging about a point per game and playing more than 26 minutes a night – putting him among the NHL’s leaders and opening eyes league-wide. “I’m a big fan,” said Winnipeg Jets center Mark Scheifele. “He’s unbelievable. He skates really well, he’s got a good stick, thinks the game really fast, and his offensive talent is pretty special. He’s not just offensive, he’s not just defensive, he does it all. He skates so well, it makes it tough to beat him.”
While Washington’s John Carlson will have something to say about it, Josi is in the conversation for his first Norris Trophy. And with years of productive hockey left, he has found his sweet spot both on and off the ice. So what advice would he give to Young Josi, that eager kid from Bern? “Enjoy it,” he said. “It goes by so quick. I remember the day I came into the league and played my first game. Now I’m 29 turning 30 in my ninth season.”
Thinking back to those early days, Poile can still picture the fresh-faced Josi, full of potential and positivity. “Always a smile on his face, upbeat, someone who loved to play the game,” Poile said. “You felt right away that this kid could be really good. His skating, his personality, every game I’ve ever seen he’s got the puck all the time, and that’s not exactly the norm for a defenseman. I don’t think any of us had the foresight to see how the game would change in 10 years, but if we did we wouldn’t have taken him in the second round, we would’ve taken him in the first.”
HE’S UNBELIEVABLE. HE’S NOT JUST OFFENSIVE, HE’S NOT JUST DEFENSIVE, HE DOES IT ALL– MARK SCHEIFELE
That certainly would have caused a lot of chatter on the draft floor, but the result would have been the same: Roman Josi, captain of the Predators, here to pleasantly exceed your expectations – even if those who were around at the beginning could see the future. “Nashville knew,” Jones said. “We all knew how good he was going to be.”
Well, it looks like at least one of the twins will be donning the black and gold.
With their 22nd overall selection in the 2026 NHL Entry Draft, the Pittsburgh Penguins selected right wing Liam Ruck from the Medicine Hat Tigers of the WHL. Ruck, along with his twin brother, Markus, put up massive numbers in the WHL last season with 45 goals and 104 points in 68 games, while Markus had 21 goals and 108 points in 68 games playing on the same line.
Both Liam and Markus are committed to the University of North Dakota for the 2027-28 season, as they each plan to play for Medicine Hat in 2026-27.
The 6-foot, 183-pound forward is a dangerous offensive player, and he has some speed to boot. But the most lethal weapon is his shot, which is, arguably, one of the best in the 2026 class. The Penguins are getting a sniper with Ruck, and if his brother is selected in the second round at 39, many have compared their connection and chemistry to that of the Sedin twins.
The NHL Draft continues Saturday with rounds 2-7. The Penguins still have their 39th, 54th, 86th, and 170th selections for the time being.
The Nashville Predators have made another first-round pick in the 2026 NHL draft.
After acquiring pick No. 31 from the Carolina Hurricanes for picks No. 42 and 57, they drafted Tommy Bleyl. A right-handed-shooting defensemen, who was slated to go in the late first round.
The Pro Hockey Group, founded by former NHL scout Jason Bukala, released a blurb on what type of player he is.
"Bleyl is a mobile, puck-moving defenseman who excels with the puck on his stick. His skating, vision and passing ability allow him to drive transition, create offense and contribute effectively on the power play."
Bleyl has the potential to be an impactful defensemen similar to how Lane Hutson plays with the Montreal Canadiens. He can use his skating and vision to make a great first pass and crease offense.
That is a big need for the Predators. They have a ton of young forwards, including their 10th overall pick Wyatt Cullen. However, they are pretty thin in terms of high-end prospects on the blue line. Bleyl helps with that a lot and has a good chance at being the future of the Predators' blue line.
Bleyl played the 2025-26 season with the Moncton Wildcats in the QMJHL. Where he played in 63 games and scored 13 goals and 68 assists for 81 points. After a strong season, he will return to the Wildcats next season, but then he will jump to the NCAA and join Michigan State University in the 2027-28 season.
The Anaheim Ducks finished off a busy Day 1 of the 2026 NHL Entry Draft by selecting Marcus Nordmark with the 28th overall pick. The Ducks acquired the 28th pick by trading picks 29 and 117 to the Vegas Golden Knights. They acquired the 29th pick, along with the 15th pick (Nikita Klepov), from the St. Louis Blues in exchange for forward Mason McTavish.
Nordmark was selected from Djurgardens IF in Sweden. During the 2025-26 season, he tallied 38 points (14-24=38) in 25 games at the U18 level and an assist in eight games at the SHL level. He represented Sweden at the U18 World Championship, where he scored four points (3-1=4) in six games en route to a gold medal.
With the puck on his stick, Nordmark dictates pace and controls play by protecting and making deft plays from everywhere in the offensive zone. While not the lightest on his feet, he has all the other tools necessary to become a producer at the NHL level.
Though not too involved when off-puck, he finds soft ice and has a quick, heavy release that can beat goaltenders from distance. He has the vision to know when to keep his feet moving, make a slip pass, or attempt something a bit more ambitious.
Skating and forechecking leave something to be desired, and he’s not overly physical despite his 6-foot-2 frame. He’s under contract with Djurgardens for the 2026-27 season.
On Friday night at the NHL Draft, the Detroit Red Wings made a splash, sending goaltending prospect Sebastian Cossa to the Utah Mammoth in exchange for the 23rd overall pick. Detroit would go on to use the pick on Kamloops Blazers forward JP Hurlbert, who grew up dreaming of wearing a Red Wings jersey.
The Allen, Texas native is coming off one of the most impressive rookie seasons the WHL has seen in years, posting 42 goals and 97 points in 68 games with the Kamloops Blazers, finishing fourth in the entire league in scoring and earning WHL Rookie of the Year honors in the process.
Hurlbert spoke to Sportsnet's Ailish Forfar shortly after his selection and made it clear that being picked by Detroit is about more than just hockey for him.
"I was a Red Wings fan growing up. My whole family is from Detroit. It's so special to be able to put on this jersey. I'm so excited."
"That's how I got into hockey. I was a Red Wings fan. My grandpa, my whole family is from Detroit. It's so special to be able to put on this jersey. I'm so excited."
The six-foot, 190 pound forward will enter the organization with high expectations as the piece Detroit sent to Utah in Sebastian Cossa is widely viewed as a potential difference-maker at the NHL level as early as next season, meaning the pressure on Hurlbert to deliver early on.
The Red Wings trade their way into the first round and draft J.P. Hurlbert with the 23rd overall pick ☑️ pic.twitter.com/L6qOQaB0sf
What Red Wings fans can be sure of is that they are getting a player who is deeply passionate about the organization and will pour everything into representing it well. Detroit fans may not have to wait long for a first look either. Hurlbert has committed to the University of Michigan, putting him in close proximity to the Red Wings organization and his family in the area.
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