2026 NHL Draft: Central Division needs

The 2026 Upper Deck NHL Draft will be held June 26-27 at KeyBank Center in Buffalo. The first round will be Friday (7 p.m. ET; ESPN, SN, TVAS) and rounds 2-7 on Saturday (11 a.m. ET; NHLN, ESPN+, SN). NHL.com is counting down to the draft with in-depth profiles on top prospects, podcasts and other features. Today, we examine draft needs for teams in the Central Division.  Full draft coverage can be found here.

The 2026 NHL Draft provides an opportunity for teams to shore up positions of need with an injection of young talent. 

Here are what the eight teams in the Central Division could be looking to do at the draft (teams listed in alphabetical order): 

Chicago Blackhawks

Top Priority: Defensemen

First pick: No. 34

The situation: The Blackhawks pushed their rebuilding effort into a new direction when they traded the No. 4 pick to the Buffalo Sabres as part of a package for defenseman Bowen Byram and forward Jordan Greenway on Tuesday. That leaves Chicago to make its first selection with the second pick of the second round. Byram helps fill a need for an experienced puck-moving defenseman. While there are some intriguing young defensemen developing, including Artyom Levshunov (No. 2, 2024), Kevin Korchinski (No. 7, 2022) and Sam Rinzel (No. 25, 2022), there's still a need for more depth at that position. They also could look to find a scoring presence on the wing to pair with one of their top-flight centers, Connor Bedard, Frank Nazar and Anton Frondell. Chicago also has No. 37 in the second round and six picks in all.

Possible fits: Adam Goljer, D, Trencin (SVK), Ryan Roobroeck, LW, Niagara (OHL); Nikita Shcherbakov, D, Ufa Jr. (RUS-JR)

Colorado Avalanche

Top Priority: Best player available

First pick: No. 74

The situation: The Avalanche won't make the first of their nine selections until the third round, with a pick acquired from the Nashville Predators as part of the Ross Colton trade June 16; they have two picks each in the fourth and fifth round, and four in the seventh. The player they feel is the best available regardless of position likely will be the choice, but finding a young goalie to develop could be a tiebreaker if all other things are equal.

Possible fits: Filip Ruzicka, G, Brandon (WHL); Yegor Rybkin, G, Nizhny Novgorod Jr. (RUS-JR); Vilho Vanhatalo, RW, Tappara Jr. (FIN-JR)

Dallas Stars

Top Priority: Defensemen

First pick: No. 59

The situation: The Stars will make the first of their five picks late in the second round after trading their first selection to the Carolina Hurricanes as part of the Mikko Rantanen deal (Carolina then traded the pick to the New York Rangers for defenseman K'Andre Miller). Dallas has focused mostly on forwards the past three years at the draft, while using just three of their 15 picks on defensemen, a list topped by Tristan Bertucci (2023, No. 61), who had 24 points (five goals, 19 assists) in 63 games with Texas of the American Hockey League in his first professional season. A draft deep in defensemen could be beneficial as the Stars might look to fill out that area of their prospect pipeline.

Possible fits: Samu Alalauri, D, Pelicans Jr. (FIN-JR); Mans Gudmundsson, D, Farjestad Jr. (SWE-JR); Lincoln Kuehne, D, Arizona State (NCAA)

Minnesota Wild

Top Priority: Center or goalie

First pick: No. 89

The situation: The Wild will make the first of their five selections late in the third round after trading their picks in the first round (to the Vancouver Canucks for Quinn Hughes) and second round (to the Nashville Predators for Gustav Nyquist). Addressing their center depth could be one option; their best prospect is Charlie Stramel, who they chose in the first round (No. 21) in the 2023 NHL Draft, and they also chose center Adam Benak in fourth round (No. 102) of the 2025 NHL Draft. Opting for a goalie also could be an option since they've only selected one, Chase Wutzke (2024, No. 142) since selecting Jesper Wallstedt in the first round (No. 20) of the 2021 NHL Draft.

Possible fits: Dayne Beuker, C, USA U-18 (NTDP-USHL); Filip Ruzicka, G, Brandon (WHL); Marek Sklenicka, G, Seattle (WHL)

Nashville Predators

Top Priority: Skilled forwards 

First pick: No. 10

The situation: The Predators have fully stocked their prospect base with 26 selections the previous three years at the draft. Some of those players are starting to mature into NHL players, with forward Matthew Wood (2023, No. 15) tying for eighth among NHL rookies with 17 goals, and forward Brady Martin (2025, No. 5) earning a spot on the opening-night roster and playing three games before being returned to junior hockey. More could have an impact next season, among them defenseman Tanner Molendyk (2023, No. 24) and forward Aiden Fink (2023, No. 218). So where do they look with their first of 11 picks this year? It will be the first draft since Chris MacFarland was hired as general manager June 2 so the approach could be different than years past for the Predators and for MacFarland; during the three drafts he oversaw as GM of the Colorado Avalanche, the team made two first-round selections and 17 picks total. Adding a forward who can drive offense could be the preferred direction for the Predators, but with a well-rounded base of prospects, they could take the best player available regardless of position.

Possible fits: Viggo Bjorck, C, Djurgarden (SWE); Tynan Lawrence, C, Boston University (NCAA); Daxon Rudolph, D, Prince Albert (WHL)

St. Louis Blues

Top Priority: Center

First-round picks: No. 11, No. 15, No. 16, No. 29

The situation: After making three picks at the 2025 draft, they'll make four picks alone in the first round this year, with 13 selections in total in what will be general manager Doug Armstrong's final time overseeing the Blues' draft before Alexander Steen takes over on July 1. In addition to their choice at No. 11, the Blues have No. 15, acquired from the Detroit Red Wings for defenseman Justin Faulk, No. 16, acquired from the Washington Capitals for forward Jordan Kyrou, and No. 29, which belonged to the Colorado Avalanche and was acquired from the New York Islanders for forward Brayden Schenn. They could be the first team to make four selections in the first round since the New York Islanders in 1999. Finding a young center who could play in the top six could be the path they go with their first pick, but with the stockpile of draft capitol they've built, the Blues are in position to take some big swings if there's a player they feel strongly about. 

Possible fits: Ethan Belchetz, LW, Windsor (OHL); Malte Gustafsson, D, HV71 (SWE); Oliver Suvanto, C, Tappara (FIN)

Utah Mammoth

Top Priority: Defensemen

First pick: No. 19

The situation: After bringing the Stanley Cup Playoffs to Utah for the first time, the Mammoth have seven picks in the draft to continue adding to a strong group of prospects. They used their three first-round picks in the previous two years at the draft to select centers, and Caleb Desnoyers (2025, No. 4), Tij Iginla (2024, No. 6) and Cole Beaudoin (2024, No. 24) all had strong seasons and could contend for NHL roster spots next season. Finding a young defenseman to add to that area of their prospect group could be the target of their first pick this year.

Possible fits: Thomas Bleyl, D, Moncton (QMJHL); Ryan Lin, D, Vancouver (WHL); Xavier Villeneuve, D, Blainville-Boisbriand (QMJHL)

Winnipeg Jets

Top Priority: Defensemen

First pick: No. 8

The situation: The Jets have the opportunity to take advantage of a draft deep in high-end defensemen. It's certainly an area of need with Josh Morrissey turning 31 this season and a lack of NHL-caliber prospects behind him. But with seven picks this year and an aging core group in Winnipeg -- in addition to Morrissey, goalie Connor Hellebuyck and forwards Adam Lowry and Mark Scheifele are 33, and forward Kyle Connor turns 30 in December -- this could be a pivotal time for Winnipeg to find prospects at all positions who could join younger players like forwards Cole Perfetti (24) and Gabriel Vilardi (26) in helping support that core group.

Possible fits: Viggo Bjorck, C, Djurgarden (SWE); Daxon Rudolph, D, Prince Albert (WHL); Keaton Verhoeff, D, North Dakota (NCAA)