Why Rangers may target center Viggo Bjorck with 5th pick in 2026 NHL Draft
Since winding up with the No. 5 pick in the NHL Draft Lottery on May 5, the near-universal assumption surrounding the forward-hungry New York Rangers is that they will be forced to settle for selecting from among a group of elite defenseman prospects in the first round of the draft June 26. The top-ranked trio of forwards, wingers Gavin McKenna and Ivar Stenberg, along with center Caleb Malhotra, are largely expected to be off the board by the time the Blueshirts are on the clock.
At least one top draft evaluator, however, thinks the Rangers might be able to draft a top forward prospect after all – just not the one that anyone anticipated a short time ago.
“Actually, it wouldn’t shock me if they took Viggo Bjorck at 5, presuming Malhotra’s gone,” Corey Pronman, one of the The Athletic’s resident NHL Draft experts, said Wednesday. “I think that’s something they have to at least seriously talk about.”
Such a decision was nearly unthinkable up until recently. Bjorck, a 5-foot-9, 177-pound center who plays for Djurgardens in the Swedish Hockey League, was viewed as an intriguing prospect who nearly all evaluators had grouped into the second tier of first-round forwards. Several key events, however, aligned to drive Bjork’s stock upward prior to the draft. Add in the Rangers’ pressing need for a young center with top-six potential to a system bereft of such assets, and the 18-year-old Bjorck could be the name called at the podium when the Rangers select fifth overall.
World championships, NHL Combine have Viggo Bjorck’s arrow pointing upward
Bjorck’s ascent began at the 2026 IIHF World Junior Championship, where he opened eyes by recording three goals and six assists in seven games to help lead Sweden to the gold medal. Bjorck had two assists in the championship game, a 4-2 victory over Czechia. That performance earned him a spot on Sweden’s roster for the World Championships, held in May. As the youngest player ever to play for Sweden at the Worlds, Bjorck notched six points in eight games, and played in the top-six forward group.
Bjorck, a right-handed shot, frequently centered countryman Stenberg in recent years, giving evaluators a detailed look at how the pair measure up — and those evaluators like what they see.
“He hasn’t been far off Stenberg in terms of World Juniors. Even going back to the World Juniors Summer Showcase last summer, Bjorck has stood toe to toe to him,” said Scott Wheeler, Pronman’s fellow draft guru at The Athletic. “That doesn’t mean the [NHL] projection is the same, but from a performance (standpoint), side by side, they’ve been comparable when they’ve played together.”
Next up was the NHL Combine from May 31-June 6, when Bjorck impressed again with his raw tools. A dynamic 200-foot player with excellent offensive instincts, vision and hockey IQ, and relentless compete level, Bjorck also interviewed well and conveyed confidence that his size wouldn’t be a roadblock to success in the NHL. It certainly wasn’t a hindrance when he played for Djurgardens’ junior team in 2024-25, when he had 27 goals and 47 assists in 42 games, with a plus-38 rating.
His move to Djurgardens’ top level in 2025-26 saw some adjustment, as he scored six goals and added nine assists in 42 contests while playing against older players as a 17- and 18-year-old in one of the top leagues in the world. Bjorck’s results in international competition this season, however, along with the strong impression he left at the combine, kept his stock on the rise with the draft drawing close.
“He’s the guy who can survive everywhere he goes, even though he’s a smaller body,” NHL Director of European Scouting Jukka-Pekka Vuorinen said after the Worlds. “He showed that in the Swedish Hockey League and also on the men’s national team. … He’s like a Sidney Crosby-type player, and his hockey intelligence shows through with clever movement and spatial awareness in tight areas, which will, in my mind, help him adjust to the NHL in the future.”
Pronman, who had the Calgary Flames grabbing Bjorck at No. 6 in his mock draft, selecting right behind the Rangers, views Bjorck as a highly underrated prospect who is overshadowed by Stenberg. Other evaluators now appear to be seeing the light as well – particularly after the Carolina Hurricanes’ run to the Stanley Cup, which highlighted what Bjorck might become in the NHL.
The Hurricanes were powered through the playoffs in large part by center Logan Stankoven, who topped the club with 11 goals in the postseason and added five assists while playing top-six minutes. Stankoven, listed at 5-foot-8 and 165 pounds, lasted until the 47th pick in the 2021 draft – almost certainly because of his size – where the Dallas Stars selected him. The 23-year-old also scored 21 goals in the 2025-26 regular season and along with some of his contemporaries, is taking a wrecking ball to the notion that small centers can’t succeed in the NHL.
Rangers GM Chris Drury might see some of himself in Viggo Bjorck
As a result, everything could be lining up for Bjorck to get serious consideration for the Rangers to take fifth overall. The man who would sign off on doing so, after all, understands. Rangers general manager Chris Drury was also a smaller center (5-foot-10, 191 pounds) who was overlooked early in his draft year, lasting until the third round and 72nd pick in 1994. Drury went on to score 255 goals and record 615 points in a 12-year NHL career, and like Stankoven, excelled in the postseason to help the Colorado Avalanche win the Stanley Cup in 2001.
More importantly, the Rangers likely prefer to add a forward with high upside with the fifth pick over a defenseman – and a center above all. The only promising youth in the organization at that premium position is Noah Laba, a fourth-round find in 2022 who turned in an impressive rookie season in 2025-26 and might prove to be a mainstay going forward. Laba, though, projects more as a strong third-line option at this point, with his value being in his puck-hounding skills, strong 200-foot game, penalty-killing abilities, speed, and physicality, rather than elite offensive prowess.
Bjorck would give the Rangers a bonafide high-end prospect in the middle – which will be much more difficult to find with their second pick of the first round, 26th overall. They certainly could use an elite defense prospect, but the need up front is greater, especially at center. Current top pivots Mika Zibanejad and J.T. Miller are set to play next season at 33, and Vincent Trocheck could be traded this summer.
Whether the Rangers seriously consider Bjorck at 5 is contingent on how the first four picks go. If Malhotra or Stenberg falls to them, it’s all but certain that Drury gleefully snaps that player up. If defensemen Chase Reid or Carson Carels are there, those players will also prove difficult to pass on.
Bjorck, though, is an option that will create serious drafter’s remorse for teams that overlook him – just as Stankhoven is doing now, and Drury did a generation before. With the Rangers authoring so many ugly misses with high draft picks in recent years, selecting Bjork might make them look awfully smart in the years to come.
