New York Rangers 2026 NHL Draft tracker: Selection, analysis for each pick
With an urgent need to restock their shallow prospect pool, the New York Rangers face a critical two days at the 2026 NHL Draft in Buffalo on June 26 and 27.
After finishing last in the Eastern Conference this past season, and missing the Stanley Cup Playoffs two years in a row, the Rangers look to add as much future NHL talent as possible at the draft. The Rangers have two first-round picks on Friday, including No. 5 overall after dropping two spots in the draft lottery. Whomever they select with that fifth overall pick must become a foundational player moving forward — simply they cannot miss with that pick.
Chris Peters of FloSports told Forever Blueshirts on the Rink Rap podcast ahead of the draft that the Rangers are in “a really good spot” with the No. 5 pick because the top-end of this draft class is deep with highly-skilled players.
They also own the No. 26 overall pick, originally belonging to the Dallas Stars and acquired from the Carolina Hurricanes in the K’Andre Miller trade last summer.
New York has nine more selections to make on Day 2 of the draft Saturday, including four in the third round. There’s certainly a chance that some of the Day 2 picks could be packaged to move up in the draft, or used in other player trades.
The Rangers never had the No. 5 overall pick in the draft’s history. They did have Top-10 picks in four consecutive drafts from 2017-20, though only Alexis Lafreniere (No. 1 in 2020) remains on the Rangers roster. Kappo Kaako (No. 2, 2019), Vitali Kravtsov (No. 9, 2018), and Lias Andersson (No. 7, 2017) each was traded away, and the latter two are already out of the NHL.
Last season, the Rangers didn’t have a first-round pick, but selected a first-round talent in forward Malcolm Spence in the second round at No. 43 overall. Their most recent first-round selection was defenseman EJ Emery in 2024 (No. 30 overall).
Prior to the start of this year’s draft, the Rangers traded forward Brett Berard to the Montreal Canadiens for defenseman William Trudeau. Then on Day 2 of the draft, the Rangers traded forward Adam Edstrom to the Nashville Predators for a late-round pick and low-level prospect.
BREAKING: The Rangers acquired 25-year-old forward Pavel Dorofeyev, a two-time 30-goal scorer, from the Vegas Golden Knights in exchange for the Nos. 26 and 92 picks in this year’s draft and a conditional first-rounder in 2028.
The Rangers then signed the pending restricted free agent to a seven-year, $77 million contract.
Dates, Times, How to Watch 2026 NHL Draft
First round: Friday, June 26, 7 p.m. ET (ESPN)
Rounds 2-7: Saturday, June 27, 11 a.m. ET (NHL Network, ESPN+)
New York Rangers 2026 NHL Draft tracker
First round — No. 5 overall: Alberts Smits (D; Munich EHC)
With a slew of potential difference-making defensemen still on the board, the Rangers selected the one believed to be most NHL-ready. Smits is big (6-foot-3, 205 pounds), strong, physical, mobile, and played in two professional leagues this past season — one in Finland, the other in Germany. The 18-year-old had two assists in four games representing Latvia at the Milan-Cortina Olympics, and also played against pros in the IIHF World Championship. Smits, the No. 2-ranked international skater per NHL Central Scouting, starred for Latvia at the 2026 World Junior Championship, where he was their best player and a team leader. He has all the makings of a long-term answer on the left side of the Rangers defense corps, and early reports are that he will sign his entry-level contract this summer and join the Rangers organization ASAP.
Second round — No. 64 overall: Benjamin MacBeath (D; Calgary, WHL)
Some scouts and draft experts thought MacBeath could be selected in the first round. So, this could turn out to be a steal for the Rangers at the end of the second round. MacBeath is a left-shot, two-way defenseman who recorded 51 points (seven goals, 44 assists) in the WHL this past season. His skating is his greatest asset and helped him be ranked as the No. 22 North American skater by Central Scouting. Consistency, both in effort and production, is what the 6-foot-2, 196-pounder must get better at. He’s committed to the University of Denver, where he’ll try and help the defending national champs repeat in 2026-27.
Third round — No. 67 overall: Danai Shaiikov (G; Gatineau, QMJHL)
With a few goalies already off the board, the Rangers moved early in the third round to help fill a major void in their prospect pipeline — especially with Dylan Garand graduating to the NHL and expected to be Igor Shesterkin’s backup next season. Born in Kazakhstan, Shaiikov was a standout between the pipes for Gatineau in his first season in North America, tying for third among all QMJHL goalies with 50 games played. The 6-foot-2, 192-pounder turned 19 in April, and his .903 save percentage and 2.78 goals-against average each was 10th-best in the QMJHL. Shaiikov was the No. 14-ranked North American goalie by Central Scouting.
Third round — No. 77 overall: Charlie Morrison (D; Quebec, QMJHL)
Morrison was the No. 39-ranked North American skater, per Central Scouting, but his value dropped during his draft year because he missed more than 20 games due to injury. He’s viewed more as a stay-at-home defenseman with good size (6-foot-2, 200 pounds). Morrison, who was No. 29 in the mid-term rankings, finished the season with 13 points (four goals, nine assists) in 41 games for Quebec. He’s headed to UConn in the fall and is expected to spend at least a couple years there to develop, since he’s considered a late-bloomer.
Third round — No. 81 overall: Tomas Chrenko (C; Nitra, Slovakia)
The Rangers badly need a highly-skilled offensive center in their system, and it looks like they landed a real good one here later in the third round. Chrenko is only 5-foot-11, 173 pounds, but he’s got some serious swagger and skill. Playing in the top pro league in Slovakia, Chrenko had 31 points (nine goals, 22 assists) in 44 games, and scored the Game 7 overtime goal to lift Nitra to the league championship. He was an absolute stud for Slovakia at the 2026 World Junior Championship, scoring five goals, recording a hat trick against Germany, and totaling eight points in five games. Real good skater, excellent vision, and a skill level that pops makes him an intriguing pick here, even if he comes with questions about his size and willingness to play defense.
Fourth round — No. 102 overall: Spencer Bowes (LW; Ottawa, OHL)
The Rangers entered Day 2 without a fourth-round pick, but they traded up, dealing a fifth- and sixth-round pick to the Seattle Kraken in order to get Bowes. A local kid from Ottawa, Bowes recorded 23 goals and 42 points in 67 games for — wait for it — the 67’s. He’ll play another season in the OHL and then committed to Providence College in 2027-28.
Sixth round — No. 162 overall: Andre Mondoux (D; Kingston, OHL)
A left-shot defenseman, Mondoux stands 6-foot-4 and totaled 18 points (six goals, 12 assists) in 66 games with Kingston last season. He appears to have a solid make-up, considering he was a 11th-round pick in the OHL Draft, yet carved out a full-time role with Kingston, and now is a sixth-round NHL draft pick. He attended development camp with the Philadelphia Flyers a year ago, and is committed to play at Notre Dame moving forward.
Sixth round — No. 163 overall: Darian Anderson (RW; Flint, OHL)
Anderson is a 6-foot-3 forward who scored 20 goals and totaled 45 points in his first OHL season in 2025-26. Coaches say he has a high Hockey IQ and decent skiil set, though projects at upper levels to be a bottom-six player. Anderson had a pretty good tilt in the OHL with top Rangers prospect Liam Greentree last season, so there’s that, too. He’s expected to play at Clarkson moving forward.
Seventh round — No. 193 overall: Ivan Patrikhayev (D; CSKA Moscow; KHL)
For the second straight year, the Rangers selected five defensemen — closing out this year’s draft by choosing Patrikhayev, a left-shot who played 76 games (including playoffs) in the KHL this past season. Patrikhayev is an older prospect — he’ll turn 21 in February — so it’ll be interesting to see if comes to North America sooner rather than later. He stands 6-feet and weighs 185 pounds.
