The Vancouver Canucks will pick third in the 2026 NHL draft.
The Canucks, who finished last overall in the 2025-26 NHL standings, had an 18.5 per cent chance (the best of all non-playoff teams) of getting the top choice heading into Tuesday’s draft lottery.
The Toronto Maple Leafs will have the No. 1 pick after winning the lottery. The Leafs had an 8.5 per cent chance of getting the top pick. The San Jose Sharks jumped from the ninth overall slot and will get the No. 2 pick.
The remaining draft order after the top three: the Chicago Blackhawks, New York Rangers, Calgary Flames, Seattle Kraken, Winnipeg Jets, Florida Panthers, Nashville Predators, St. Louis Blues, New Jersey Devils, New York Islanders, Columbus Blue Jackets, St. Louis (from Detroit) and the Washington Capitals.
Picks 17 to 32 will be decided after the completion of the Stanley Cup playoffs. The draft takes place starting June 26 in Buffalo.
Expected to be in the running as the No. 1 overall pick is Gavin McKenna, a former Medicine Hat Tigers star who played last year with Penn State of the NCAA. He is No. 1 on NHL Central Scouting’s final rankings of North American skaters.
McKenna, from Whitehorse, finished tied for fifth in the NCAA with 51 points in 35 games.
Another candidate for the No. 1 pick is winger Ivar Stenberg of Frolunda in the Swedish Hockey League. He was ranked No. 1 on the final Central Scouting rank of international skaters. He had 33 points in in 43 games for Frolunda, which was the most points in a season by an 18-year-old SHL player since future Canucks stars Daniel Sedin (42) and Henrik Sedin (34) back in 1998-99. The Sedins were the last players taken in the top three by Vancouver.
For the first time since 1999, the Vancouver Canucks will select third overall! pic.twitter.com/wfgG4Mak8P
— Vancouver Canucks (@Canucks) May 5, 2026
Other players who could be selected in the top 10: defencemen Keaton Verhoeff, a former member of the Victoria Royals who played this past season with North Dakota of the NCAA, Alberts Šmits (Jukurit Mikkeli of Liiga in Finland), Carson Carels of Prince George (WHL) and Chase Reid of Sault Ste. Marie (OHL). Forwards Caleb Malhotra of Brantford (OHL), Tynan Lawrence of Boston University, Oliver Suvanto (Tappara of Liiga) and Viggo Bjork of Djurgårdens (SHL) are also potential top-10 selections.
READ MORE: Aggravated assault charge dropped against Yukon’s Gavin McKenna