2026 NHL Mock Draft: The Best Fits for the New York Rangers
The New York Rangers finished with the third-worst record in the NHL in 2025-26, which means they are guaranteed a top-five pick in the NHL draft. The top two spots are up for grabs, and so the Rangers could move up as high as first overall. However, that means two teams could just as well jump ahead of them, pushing them down to the fifth slot.
The different outcomes would have a critical impact on where the Rangers are headed as an organization. Everyone knows this team needs to infuse young talent, and not necessarily of the depth variety. This franchise needs a true difference-maker to invest in to give the team some identity.
Which player the Rangers can and will pick depends not only on where they land in the draft, but on what teams ahead of them (if any) do themselves. The Rangers, of course, aren't exactly going to make their draft list public, but we can make some educated guesses about whom the team might value at each of those five potential draft slots.
We know what the draft pool looks like, what types of players the Rangers tend to go after, and the organizational needs.
First Overall: Gavin McKenna
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Scouting Snapshot: A highly skilled offensive zone operator on the left wing. Excellent hands, primarily a playmaker, but also the capacity to score. The type of player who can and will create offense by himself. Undersized (5'11"), and he needs to add some skating burst, but McKenna has 100-point upside.
Organizational Fit: Wing is not the biggest organizational need; Alexis Lafreniére and Gabe Perreault are the two most important Under-25 players in the organization. But the Rangers are in no position to be picky about what talent they are able to get their hands on. Lafreniére has played well on the right wing, and if McKenna and Perreault make Will Cuylle redundant, then you can always trade him to address other needs.
Confidence in the Pick Projection: High. There are a lot of fair criticisms to throw the Rangers' way when it comes to organizational abandonment of skill in favor of other traits, but Director of Amateur Scouting John Lilley is a competent talent evaluator, and I think he'd make a sober analysis of this draft class and see McKenna as the definitive player available. The Rangers have a heavy presence in NCAA hockey, and McKenna's performances in intense games down the stretch should win everyone over.
Second Overall: Ivar Stenberg
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Scouting Snapshot: A wonderful blend of skill and motor at left wing. Stenberg is under six feet tall, but his lower body strength is great, and bigger players have a tough time knocking him around. Strong puck-carrying abilities when driving north-south. A good playmaker from the perimeter, but also has the ability to carry the puck into the interior and score below the dots. All-Star upside as a 200-foot first-line winger.
Organizational Fit: Like with McKenna, left wing isn't the first or second choice for where to build, but you have to work with the draft class in front of you. Sullivan often likes to play wingers on their off-side, and Stenberg, a lefty shot, has played right wing at times for Frölunda this season. McKenna is the better prospect, but Stenberg would bring a different type of energy to the organization. He should see time in tough matchups and defensive situations during his prime.
Confidence in Pick Projection: Very high. Second overall should be the easiest pick in the draft; take whichever player of McKenna and Stenberg is left. There is a possibility the Rangers overthink it and pick someone they view as filling a need, but I have a hard time seeing them pass on someone who has put up numbers in Sweden on par with the Sedins. He is also close to being an NHL difference-maker already, which would fit with the team's desire for a quick turnaround.
Third Overall: Keaton Verhoeff
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Scouting Snapshot: A 6'4" right-handed defenseman who already plays a smart, mature game but is still looking to untap his significant potential. Smart player in all three zones. Commands the points well offensively and has a great shot. Intelligent in the defensive zone player who uses his reach well and will have a physical edge in the NHL. Can move when at full stride, but needs to improve his footwork to get better in pivots. A potential No. 1 defenseman with highly sought-after leadership qualities.
Organizational Fit: The Rangers lack any true high-upside defensemen in the organization. If you squint, you can maybe see No. 4 abilities for EJ Emery and Artyom Gonchar, but that's the best-case scenario. The Rangers' more immediate need is on the left side of the defense, but Verhoeff would have an easier transition to the NHL (likely in 2027-2028) playing behind Adam Fox, who will absorb all the tough minutes. The big question is how the Rangers would find Verhoeff's power-play time long-term, as PP QBing is one of his best traits.
Confidence in Pick Projection: It's an educated guess. The Rangers do love to pull from college hockey, and Verhoeff showed well at North Dakota, though he did slow down during the second half of the season. Third overall is where the draft starts to open up in possibilities, but the organization seems aware that it lacks puck-moving defensemen, and they also love defensemen with length. Verhoeff checks off all of it. Scouts I've spoken to think the internet evaluators dropping Verhoeff down their boards are overcorrecting. He may still be the odds-on favorite at third overall.
Fourth Overall: Caleb Malhotra
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Scouting Snapshot: A 200-foot center with no real weaknesses to speak of. An exceptionally smart player who already does lots of little things at a professional level. Great defensive acumen and is so good at finding inside positioning both offensively and defensively. Not the go-to puck carrier, but he can hold his own, and he has above-average vision. Will put himself in scoring positions even if his shot isn't a big threat. His upside is as a low-end first-line center, and possibly a future captain whom coaches deploy in all situations.
Organizational Fit: The Rangers need young centers with upside like a camel needs water. J.T. Miller, Vincent Trocheck, and Mika Zibanejad are on the wrong side of 30, and after them, all hopes rest on Noah Laba, who likely peaks as a 40-point third-line center. Mikkel Eriksen (4th round, 2025) is intriguing, but he is a big project and years away from a theoretical NHL future. Malhotra isn't the true franchise center the Rangers are looking for, but someone the team can comfortably plug in to a second-line role in the next few seasons would go a long way.
Confidence in Pick Projection: This is the theoretical selection I am most confident in. He's far and away the best center in this draft, and I've heard that the Rangers are high on Malhotra. The Rangers have been burned in the past by top prospects whose personalities clashed with organizational expectations, but Malhotra gets high marks for his attitude and has already proved his coachability this past season, making major strides in his skating and skill. In a weak draft class, a fairly sure thing like Malhotra would make sense at fourth overall. The key will be for the Rangers to learn from their mistakes with his father, Manny Malhotra. They can't rush Caleb to the NHL even if it may be tempting to do so.
Fifth Overall: Chase Reid
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Scouting Snapshot: A right-handed defenseman, Reid is the best skater in the NHL draft. He's a demon carrying the puck up the ice. His crossovers are smooth and powerful. He covers a lot of ground defensively and already has some good instincts defending one-on-one. He gets very involved offensively. His shot is very good, and his vision is decent. At 6'2, he has shown signs of playing with an edge. Reid will need a lot of coaching to make his decision-making better and find more ways to solve problems than by trying to skate his way out of them, but his upside is massive. Development will determine whether it's a second-pairing defenseman or a No. 1 franchise cornerstone.
Organizational Fit: The Rangers absolutely need high-upside defensemen, and they especially need defensemen who can skate. Even Gavrikov and Fox aren't really speedsters, and after them, it's dire. Reid projects to be one of the best skating defensemen even at the NHL level, and he would answer a lot of currently existing questions about the team's blue-line shortcomings. Figuring out how to fix players with problematic skating has been an Achilles heel for the Rangers, but with Reid, that wouldn't be a concern.
Confidence in Projection: To be honest, it's a wild guess. The draft is wide open at this point, and there are strong cases to be made for defensemen Alberts Smits and Carson Carels, among others, at this juncture. I do wonder if Carels and Smits, who have a bit more edge, fit the Rangers' philosophies more. However, I am taking a shot in the dark with Reid for a few reasons. He is the highest-upside player remaining, and I think the Rangers recognize they need true difference-makers. Furthermore, Rangers management is closely aligned with USA Hockey, and Reid performed very well for the US at the 2026 World Junior Championship.
