It would be the Toronto Maple Leafs choosing first overall on the 2026 NHL Draft, in what’s unlikely to be a preferred growth amongst most NHL followers.
Toronto gained the draft lottery, carried out stay on ESPN, on Tuesday after a sequence of 4 ping-pong balls bounced their method. The successful sequence: 7, 2, 11, 12.
It would be the first time the Maple Leafs since 2016, after they chosen captain Auston Matthews. They will definitely be hoping for comparable success this this choose. They have chosen first one different time in franchise historical past, taking Wendel Clark in 1985.
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The Leafs entered the lottery with an 8.5% likelihood on the first choose, the fifth-best odds within the subject after the Vancouver Canucks (25.5%), Chicago Blackhawks (13.5%), New York Rangers (11.5%) and Calgary Flames (9.5%). Toronto bought there by way of a 32-36-14 season wherein they completed final within the Atlantic Division.
The luck comes in the future after Toronto launched its new management of common supervisor John Chayka and senior govt advisor of hockey operations Mats Sundin. It was a contentious news conference, to say the least, due to concerns about Chayka’s track record.
The business already has a fairly sturdy guess on the first choose. Penn State winger Gavin McKenna is coming off a freshman season wherein he led the Big Ten with 38 factors in convention play. There was some query about an incident involving him at a State College bar, but his aggravated assault charge since been dropped after authorities reviewed the video.
The largest soar got here within the drawing after the Leafs took the first choose. The San Jose Sharks entered the night time within the ninth-best place, with solely a 5% likelihood on the first choose and 5.2% for the second, however they gained the second drawing. It would be the fourth straight 12 months they’ve chosen within the high 5, a span that features their first overall choice of Macklin Celebrini in 2024.
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The 2026 NHL Draft is scheduled for June 26 in Buffalo.
2026 NHL Draft order
North American skaters
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Gavin McKenna, Penn State LW
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Chase Reid, Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds D
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Carson Caels, Prince George Cougars D
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Keaton Verhoeff, North Dakota D
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Daxon Rudolph, Prince Albert Raiders D
International skaters
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Ivar Stenberg, Frolunda LW (Sweden)
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Alberts Smits, Munchen D (Germany)
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Oliver Suvanto, Tappara C (Finland)
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Viggo Bjorck, Djurgarden C (Sweden)
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Elton Hermansson, Modo RW (Sweden)
Goaltenders
No. 1 in North America: Brady Knowling, USA U-18
No. 1 in International: Dmitri Borichev, Loko Yaroslavl (Russia)