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Back in early May over on the Japers’ Rink Discord, we embarked on a mission to rank prospects for the upcoming NHL Draft (which takes place this coming Friday and Saturday, with the Caps holding, most notably, the 16th and 18th overall picks). And when I say “we,” I mean it - these rankings were compiled by conducting poll after poll after poll on the Discord, with whomever received the most votes being added to the list and having a new name replace him in the next 10-prospect poll.

The rankings may already be a little dated, but by and large the ordering reflects a general consensus of the community, balancing ceiling and floors, etc. The whole process generated some really good discussion on both the individual prospects and on ranking prospects more generally. So, without further ado, here’s the Japers’ Rink Discord Consensus Draft Rankings for 2026:

  1. Gavin McKenna, LW, Penn State University (NCAA)

  2. Ivar Stenberg, LW/RW, Frolunda HC (SHL)

  3. Chase Reid, D, Sault Ste. Marie (OHL)

  4. Keaton Verhoeef, D, North Dakota (NCAA)

  5. Caleb Malhotra, C, Brantford (OHL)

  6. Carson Carels, D, Prince George (WHL)

  7. Viggo Bjorck, C/RW, Djurgardens IF (SHL)

  8. Tynan Lawrence, C, Boston University (NCAA)

  9. Alberts Smits, D, Jukurit (Liiga)

  10. (tie) Daxon Rudolph, D, Prince Albert (WHL)

  11. (tie… the formatting here doesn’t allow for two “t-10.”) Wyatt Cullen, F, USNTDP

  12. Ethan Belchetz, LW, Windsor (OHL)

  13. Ryan Lin, D, Vancouver (WHL)

  14. Nikita Klepov, F, Saginaw (OHL)

  15. Oliver Suvanto, C, Tappara (Liiga)

  16. (tie) Adam Novotny, LW/RW, Peterborough (OHL)

  17. (tie) Malte Gustafsson, D, HV71 U20 (U20 Nationell)

  18. J.P. Hurlbert, F, Kamloops (WHL)

  19. Mathis Preston, F, Vancouver (WHL)

  20. Alexander Command, C, Örebro HK U20 (U20 Nationell)

  21. Ilia Morozov, F, Miami University (NCAA)

  22. Yegor Shilov, C, Victoriaville (QMJHL)

  23. Oscar Hemming, F, Boston College (NCAA)

  24. Liam Ruck, F, Medicine Hat (WHL)

  25. Elton Hermansson, RW/LW, MoDo (HockeyAllsvenskan)

  26. Xavier Villeneuve, D, Blainville-Boisbriand (QMJHL)

  27. Marcus Nordmark, LW, Djurgardens IF (U20 Nationell)

  28. Tommy Bleyl, D, Moncton (QMJHL)

  29. Ryan Roobroeck, C, Niagara (OHL)

  30. William Håkansson, D, Luleå HF (SHL)

  31. Juho Piiparinen, D, Taapara (Liiga)

  32. (tie) Markus Ruck, F, Medicine Hat (WHL)

  33. (tie) Jaxon Cover, LW, London Knights Canada (OHL)

  34. Jack Hextall, C, Youngstown Phantoms (USHL)

  35. Maddox Dagenais, C, Quebec (QMJHL)

  36. Simas Ignatavicius, F, Genève-Servette HC (NL)

  37. Brooks Rogowski, C, Oshawa Generals (OHL)

  38. Casey Mutryn, F, U.S. National U18 Team (NTDP)

  39. (tie) Gleb Pugachyov, RW, Chaika Nizhny Novgorod (MHL)

  40. (tie) Tomas Chrenko, C, HK Nitra (Slovakia)

  41. Nikita Shcherbakov, D, Salavat Yulaev Ufa (KHL)

  42. Ryder Cali, C, North Bay (OHL)

  43. Adam Goljer, D, HK Dukla Trencin (Slovakia)

  44. Adam Valentini, F, University of Michigan (NCAA)

  45. (tie) Niklas Aaram-Olsen, R/L, Örebro HK U20 (U20 Nationell)

  46. (tie) Tomas Galvas, D, Bili Tygri Liberec (Czechia)

  47. Ben Macbeath, D, Calgary Hitmen (WHL)

  48. Samu Alalauri, D, Pelicans U20 (U20 SM-sargja)

  49. Lavr Gashilov, C, Avto Yekaterinburg (MHL)

  50. Jakub Vaněček, D, Tri-City Americans (WHL)

Honorable mention (others receiving votes): Adam Nemec, F, Sudbury Wolves (OHL), Maksim Sokolovskii, D, London Knights (OHL), Tobias Trejbal, G, Youngstown Phantom (USHL), Beckham Edwards, C, Sarnia Sting (OHL), Giorgos Pantelas, D, Brandon Wheat Kings (OHL)

Anyway, that’s our list and we’re (loosely) sticking to it. Join us on the Discord for conversations on the Draft and more in the weeks ahead - we look forward to seeing you there.

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