The 2026 NHL Draft is now less than a month away and that means one thing: A whole lot of mock drafts. And the latest one has the Toronto Maple Leafs making a wild and unexpected swing.
Over at The Athletic, draft experts Corey Pronman and Scott Wheeler have been putting out countless mock drafts and rankings with specific themes in mind. Whether it is their own opinion in their rankings, or trying to get a sense of the top 10 prospects from scouts and executives across the NHL, there is a whole lot going on every single week leading up to the Draft on June 26.
The latest one, though, is a collaboration between Wheeler, Pronman, and Max Bultman, as they go back and forth making picks as if they are the general managers for each team. Instead of trying to predict what those teams are going to do, they make the call for what the team needs and what prospect they take.
And it came to a wild result.
Mock draft has Leafs making unexpected first pick
While it has been expected ever since the Maple Leafs won the Draft Lottery that they will be taking Gavin McKenna with the pick; since he is the highest-profile prospect, a good Canadian kid, easily marketable, and appears ready to take the big stage. But Pronman goes in a different direction.
According to him, the Leafs should take defenseman Chase Reid at first overall.
"Reid is, by the slimmest of margins, the best player on my board. The Maple Leafs are in a tough situation, though. They’re in win-now mode despite being a bottom-five possession team this season, so they have a lot of work to do to get back to contending," Pronman wrote.
"I think Gavin McKenna, Ivar Stenberg and potentially Alberts Smits could provide more immediate help. I don’t think any of them make an impact in the NHL next season, though. I’m not even sure it’s a smart bet to count on anyone in this draft truly moving the needle by two years out. Reid has the best chance of anyone in this draft to become an impact player at a premium position, even if that’s no sure thing. In the draft, you have to take the long view, not knee-jerk to fill short-term roster holes, and I would bet on the 6-foot-3, highly skilled and mobile two-way defenseman who has at least a chance to become a No. 1 D.
"People will argue don’t go against the grain here, it will get you fired, but odds are in Toronto, you’re getting fired quickly anyway, so may as well do what you think is best for the franchise."
Sure, everyone would love a 6-foot-3, right-handed defenseman that can skate extremely well to be added to this Leafs team. But it is certainly not the easiest choice to defend when two elite wingers are just hanging out there, and here's a player that didn't even produce that much offense in a weakened OHL for the Sault Ste Marie Greyhounds this past season.
What's even more surprising is that McKenna falls all the way to third overall, as the Canucks snatch him up. And even Ivar Stenberg, who is putting on a clinic over at the World Championships right now, is down to fifth overall. Instead, it's some defensemen taking their spots at the top.
It just doesn't pass the sniff test. But what do we know? We're not paid full-time to watch teenagers play hockey and then write a bunch of mock drafts and rankings to get some clicks.
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