2026 NHL Draft Tracker: Round 1 Picks, Reports, Rankings And More
Check out expert NHL draft coverage and track the first-round picks as they're announced. You can also catch up on NHL draft rankings, mock drafts, player profiles and more.
Video Transcript
Go to rapid fire.
This has been a busy show, so we're gonna have to breeze through this one.
Mm-hmm.
All right, Ryan, let's start with you.
Hottest NHL draft take going into this Friday's first round?
I'm gonna say that Viggo Bjork goes outside of the top 10.
I think he deserves to be in the top five, but because he is 5'10", maybe even a little shorter than that, he's gonna run into that bias that shorter players always run into in the draft, even though guys like Cole Caufield have proven it's silly, to pass on them.
I love that take, yeah.
The, the little guys.
Come on.
Enough of this.
The- That's right they've proven themselves, people.
Drew, what, what's your hot draft take going into this one?
I think the Colorado Avalanche are going to trade Valeri Nichushkin- Ooh during the first round of the draft.
Ooh.
I think that, I think it's just kinda time for them.
I mean, he's been so dynamic for them when they won.
He, when he's playing good, he's one of the best players, but I mean, just some of the stuff and the inconsistencies and kind of the lack of, production he's had lately for them, I think they're just ready to move on from it.
