Defensemen
Brek Liske
A versatile defender with good sense.
Adam Goljer
A mobile defender who utilizes calm awareness, a long reach and an active stick.
William Håkansson
A composed defender with a long reach and a booming point shot.
Xavier Villeneuve
Highly competitive and definitively electric, Villeneuve is a trend-bucking offensive defenseman.
Maksim Sokolovskii
Punishing left-shot shutdown defender whose fantasy value comes from the banger categories, not the scoresheet. A Nikita Zadorov-style build for deep multicategory leagues, hits, blocks, and penalty minutes, with points a long shot.
Timofei Runtso
Right-shot, two-way defenseman who moves the puck and creates off the rush, with the discipline to play both special teams. The fantasy value rides on the power play, where his shot-through volume and passing project him as a secondary point source if he climbs an NHL depth chart.
Alberts Šmits
June 2026 - Smits was selected fifth overall by the Rangers. He is arguably the most NHL ready prospect in this draft, but may not have the highest fantasy ceiling. Pat Quinn April 2026 – Smits has continued to build momentum as one of the more intriguing fantasy names in this draft class, combining size, skill, [...]
Axel Elofsson
Offense-first, right-shot defenseman who drives a power play with his skating and distribution, and the most productive blueliner in his draft class at the U20 level. The size is the risk, but the fantasy ceiling is a power-play-running top-four defender, the highest of this group.
Yaroslav Matyev
Big, mobile-for-his-size left-shot defenseman and a long-term project, already with KHL exposure at 16 but a raw offensive game. Fantasy value is negligible barring real development, the deepest of fliers.
Benjamin Cossette-Ayotte
A high-IQ, two-way defenseman.