The unofficial 2026 NHL draft viewing guide the Anaheim Ducks

The 2026 NHL entry draft opens Friday night, June 26th, in Buffalo and after spending years near the top of the draft order, the Anaheim Ducks find themselves in an unfamiliar position and currently do not have a first round pick. If you're really into prospects and scouting, this is your time to shine. But for the rest of us, who lean heavily on the opinions of other professionals and couldn't name a potential pick outside of the consensus top three, what should we be watching for? As a fan, there's always the hope for a potential trade, watching what other teams do or don't do, and the possibility of finding a future franchise cornerstone.

What to watch for

Will Verbeek make a trade?

Anaheim Ducks GM Pat Verbeek gambled this year's first round draft pick (18th overall) in the John Calrson trade with the Washington Capitals. While Carlson's short-lived tenure with the Ducks was a mixed bag of results and losing the first-round pick definitely stings now, Verbeek still has time to get the Ducks back into the opening round. Outside the constant rumors of potential suitors for Carlson, Jacob Trouba, and Radko Gudas, Verbeek still has one big chip left to play; Mason McTavish.

While the acquisition of another disgruntled center would potentially cost McTavish, plus an Olen Zellweger or Pavel Mintyukov, and another asset, Verbeek could at least net the Ducks another pick in this year's draft with a trade. With how the Chicago Blackhawks like to throw around high-end picks haphazardly, there's always the potential for the Ducks to move up in a shrewd move with another team desperate for an immediate upgrade.

What could have been

As of this moment, the Capitals still own the 18th overall pick from the Carlson trade. Per the latest mock draft from The Athletic, the Capitals are projected to select left winger Adam Novotny. With just a quick glance at the projected picks around that selection though, this portion of the draft feels dominated by forwards. Though the Ducks currently have last year's top pick of Roger McQueen in their system, the organization is really lacking in the quality of another top six forward. While draft picks are no guarantees, another shot at a lottery ticket would have been beneficial.

Rounds two through seven

The rest of the 2026 draft will begin on Saturday morning, June 27th, and will move at a much brisker pace than the first round. Should the Ducks stand pat until then, their first selection for this year will be at number 50. And once again, per The Athletic, the Ducks are projected to select Charlie Morrison, a left-handed defenseman. The Ducks will also have picks at 82 (3rd round), 178 (6th round), and 210 (7th round).

While most late round picks do not materialize as everyday NHL players, the Ducks have been able to find some gems in the later rounds. Damian Clara, the Italian Winter Olympics standout, was selected at 60 (2nd round) in 2023. Tristan Luneau, the right-handed defenseman who has had a few cameos with the big club and should be pushing for a roster spot in training camp, was selected at 53 (2nd round) in 2022. The aforementioned Zellweger was selected at 34 (2nd round) in 2021, as was surprise end of the season/playoff newcomer Tyson Hinds at 76 (3rd round). The Ducks number one defenseman, Jackson LaCombe, was a second-round draft pick in 2019 and their starting goalie, Lukas Dostal, was a third-round draft pick in 2018.

Cheer for the chaos

While the top few picks are almost always a forgone conclusion, there's always that one team that seems to overreach or overvalue their own scouting. Sometimes such picks are a spectacular failure, but other times, those picks pay off. When the Ducks selected Beckett Sennecke third overall in 2024, the consensus was the Ducks had overreached on the selection.

Flash forward till now and Sennecke has not only become a top offensive producer for the Ducks with 60 points (23 goals, 37 assists) in 82 games this past season, but Sennecke was also nominated as a Calder Trophy finalist.

You could also default to rooting for a rival, like the Kings, to make a misinformed selection that blows up in their face and hamstrings the future of the franchise. Or you could root for a team to finally nail that one pick that sets the team up for the long haul, much like how the Sabres finally broke through after over a decade a playoff misses.

Final thoughts

Outside of free agency opening on July 1st, this is one of the last times we can watch together as a hockey community, before the league slowly tapers off into the doldrums of summer break. Even without a first round pick, there are still plenty of reasons to watch the draft. Here's to hoping Verbeek makes this year's version, a little bit more exciting.

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