When the Spring draft process began, I argued that the Rangers’ best course was to keep their 2025 first-round pick and either make the pick or use it in a trade for a roster player. We are now at the end of the draft process, and the Rangers draft pick decision looms large, with the Rangers forced to declare their decision on Wednesday, 48 hours before the draft.
While no one can predict exactly how the top half of the draft will go, we now have an idea of which players have risen in the draft process and which top-ranked players could slip out of the top 10. Based on the information I have seen from reputable sources with lots of NHL contacts, I firmly believe the Rangers draft pick decision should be easy: Keep the pick. There should be several highly appealing options at 12.
The 2026 Myth
I want to reiterate this since I continue to see it floated by Rangers fans; the narrative that 2026 is a really strong class is just not true at this point in time, and it should not influence the Rangers draft pick decision. If you want a defenseman? Sure. The draft looks like it might be stronger at the top as well, and there is no denying Gavin McKenna is a better prospect than Matt Schaefer at #1. But the 2025 draft class has an abundance of top 6 center prospects that next year flat out cannot compete with. In my opinion, a class with stronger centers is better than a class with stronger defensemen (with some room for nuance).
Since next year also does not look like a deep class, I simply don’t know where people are plucking this narrative from. It has been refuted by all of the most reputable prospect writers, including Scott Wheeler, who feels strongly that the people propagating this narrative are selling you something. Question people in the fanbase who push this narrative. I stand firm that the Rangers draft pick decision should not be dependent on the 2026 draft.
Finally, dictating the Rangers draft pick decision by the extremely unlikely scenario that the Rangers are a bottom 10 team again is silly. The Eastern Conference is weak, the Rangers look set to bolster their blue line with an impact signing like Vlad Gavrikov, and Mike Sullivan is a top 5 coach in the league. The bad teams in this league are really, really bad, and the Rangers should not be among them next year. At its worst, this team was a good power-play unit away from a playoff spot last season. Don’t let fear guide your decisions. In the immortal words of Van Wilder: Write that one down.
Unlikely Options
There are a few risers that I think have no chance of being available at 12 now that we are done with the pre-draft process. At the start of the Spring, Soo Greyhounds Center Brady Martin was a player Rangers fans liked the look of, but he now looks set to go around the top 5. Jake O’Brien is another player who people hoped could drop out of the top 10, but it doesn’t sound like a likely scenario and probably never was.
James Hagens is a favorite of mine, and I think in a redraft 5 years from now, there is a ~40% chance he is the best player in the class. He probably has the best combination of hockey sense, skating, skill, and competitiveness among the forwards in the draft, and would have produced like Michael Misa in the CHL, in my opinion. Somehow, it looks like he could slide close to pick 8, but I think that’s where teams finally turn their brains on and take him. Unfortunately, I cannot see him getting to 12.
The Rangers draft pick decision should actually be influenced by the possibility of Hagens sliding. Teams will galaxy brain this, and I’m sure he wouldn’t mind playing with Gabe Perreault for the next decade or so.
Porter Martone is another player who looks like he will slide into the 7-10 range, which is surprising given his size, production, and pedigree. I don’t see him making it out of the top 10, and I understand the hesitance from Rangers fans in taking another winger who, despite his size and insane skill, has questions about pace of play.
Will’s Targets
Victor Eklund – Wing – Djurgårdens (Allsvenskan)
I know you might be rolling your eyes seeing a winger here, but I love this player, and I think he is a lock to go in the top 10 in redrafts. Do you like players like Travis Konecny, Seth Jarvis, and Jonathan Marchessault? Then you will love Eklund, and I think he is a year away from playing in the NHL. Eklund combines the best attributes of all of our top wing prospects. He has Berard’s skating ability and compete, Othmann’s shot and grit, and Perreault’s high-end skill and finishing talent. I think he would be a steal at pick 12 and become a fan favorite immediately.
Jackson Smith – LHD – Tri-City Americans (WHL)
Smith looks like the most common mock pick for the Rangers, and it makes sense. Of the defensemen often mocked in our range, Smith clearly has the most upside due to his size and skating, combined with his above-average offensive skill level for a big player. If the Rangers move on from Miller, which seems increasingly likely, their left side of defense lacks any top 4 upside. Smith makes a lot of sense at 12, and with a strong D+1 season, he could be a rise in redrafts.
Roger McQueen – RHC – Brandon Wheat Kings (WHL)
If the league deems that McQueen has a clean bill of health, he is going to go earlier than 12. But less than a week out from the draft, it does not seem to be the consensus that teams are at ease about his health. So while the risk is clear, if McQueen is available at 12, you simply cannot pass on a 6’5″ Center who can skate and plays with as much skill as him.
Gabe Vilardi seems to be a common comparable for him, and he is a player who also dropped in his draft year due to injuries. It took some time, but Vilardi has turned into a highly productive player for the Kings and now the Jets, and the consensus seems to be that McQueen’s upside is higher. The risk is worth the potential reward when it comes to McQueen.
Braeden Cootes – LHC – Seattle Thunderbirds (WHL)
Cootes should be available at 12, and while he lacks the first-line upside of the Centers ranked ahead of him, he is clearly the Center ranked outside of the top 10 with the best chance of becoming an impactful player whilst sticking at the Center position in the NHL. Some of his peers in this range, like Reschny, are likely to move to the wing at the next level.
Cootes would provide the prospect pool with the competitiveness that Chris Drury seems to want his retooled team to have, and would have two excellent mentors in the organization in Trocheck and JT Miller. I wouldn’t say picking Cootes at 12 provides surplus pick value, but this is around where he should go and would be a great addition to the prospect pool.
Kashawn Aitcheson – LHD – Barrie Colts (OHL)
Some Rangers fans might roll their eyes at the team’s rumored interest in Aitcheson, who consistently gets comparisons to former Captain Jacob Trouba due to his physical play. What critics don’t acknowledge is that he was the most productive defenseman in this year’s class aside from the injured Matthew Schaefer, and led the defensive class in goals by a significant margin with 26.
The concern with Aitcheson is that he takes bad penalties, so while he is an extremely valuable player while on the ice, he might put you in situations where you are down a man at key points in the game. If he learns to rein in his aggression, this is a really valuable piece to have in the prospect pool and would be an exact value pick.
As I wrapped up this piece, a report dropped from Scott Wheeler in his latest mock draft, stating that the Rangers are among the teams having serious discussions with the Blackhawks about moving up to pick 3. If trade happens, my targets would be James Hagens and Caleb Desnoyers.
