2026 NHL Draft Thread

[cracher]

Was talking to an exec at hockey alberta today. She mentioned there is a u13 in lloydminster that is being watched very closely due to unprecedented talent. I don't wanna say the name of a child online, but anyone know anything? or is it altogether too early to tell...

[traptor]

How does Verhoeff compare to Schaeffer?




They seem pretty comparable to me? ignoring Schaeffers obvious recent success who would be taken first given their pre draft profile.




Man, that will be a tough choice, especially if McKenna doesn't break out further in the NCAA.


Verheoff sounds like a pretty complete player.

[sureLoss]

Originally Posted by traptor

How does Verhoeff compare to Schaeffer?

Schaefer is a much better skater than Verhoeff and many think Schaefer thinks the game at a higher level.

Not to say that Verhoeff won't be good, but Schaefer is probably in a tier above him.

[Tbull8]

Originally Posted by cracher

Was talking to an exec at hockey alberta today. She mentioned there is a u13 in lloydminster that is being watched very closely due to unprecedented talent. I don't wanna say the name of a child online, but anyone know anything? or is it altogether too early to tell...

I mean I’m not surprised they start scouting these kids at that age, but there’s a long way to go to see if they turn into anything relevant. Tons of kids fizzle out

[KootenayFlamesFan]

Originally Posted by sureLoss

Schaefer is a much better skater than Verhoeff and many think Schaefer thinks the game at a higher level.

Not to say that Verhoeff won't be good, but Schaefer is probably in a tier above him.

Some of the concerns I've seen over his skating are overblown, imo. He's not Rico Fata fast, but his skating is not a big concern at all, from what I've seen.

He's big, can play PP, PK, last minute, etc. If he doesn't go #1 he's going to be one heck of a consolation prize.

[Sandman]

I agree that concerns about Verhoeff’s skating are overblown- he looked just fine in the last game that was on TV.

Comparing him to Schaefer is hard, because they play slightly different styles, but Schaefer looks now to be headed to a tier of defenseman that right now only includes Cale Makar- he’s going to be that good. KV is going to be a tier or two below that (agreed completely with sureLoss) but could still be a top-pairing, frachise-type D.

[Sandman]

Originally Posted by HighLifeMan

Alberts Smits has already surpassed Miro Heiskanen's draft year point production in the Liiga - granted he is eight months older that Miro was, but it's still an amazing start to the year. If he keeps up anywhere near this level of production - it's hard not to see him pushing as a top three pick.

I've been putting off doing any write-ups on Smits, because I'm taking a bit of a wait-and-see approach. There is undoubtedly a ton to like- he's big, skates well, and actually plays pretty solid defensively. Right now, he's playing over 20 minutes a night in the men's league, up to almost 25 on a few occasions, and shows no signs of being sent back to the Junior league.

There are plenty of scouts though, who insist that Smits' game (at least in the offensive end) won't translate well to the NHL. I've watched him, and some of those concerns are overblown, but some are legit; his game is quite chaotic right now, very high-risk, and very active and aggressive. He won't be able to hold on to the puck as much as he does right now when he's in North America, won't have the room to slip around opponents, and won't have as much of a green light to rove and do whatever he wants. In addition, his retrievals and breakout passes are often very shaky, his decision-making is sometimes questionable, and his experiments often result in egregious giveaways.

That said, there's no doubt that Smits is a first-round talent, and may go in the top-20 easily. Even if he doesn't turn into Makar or Dahlin, he is still easily a top-4 defenseman in the making, and will still pile up plenty of points, while playing a solid two-way game- and there's plenty of hope for more. My bet is that he climbs the rankings, but I'm waiting until later in the season to anoint him the "next one". Just my opinion.

[Fan69]

Originally Posted by Sandman

I've been putting off doing any write-ups on Smits, because I'm taking a bit of a wait-and-see approach. There is undoubtedly a ton to like- he's big, skates well, and actually plays pretty solid defensively. Right now, he's playing over 20 minutes a night in the men's league, up to almost 25 on a few occasions, and shows no signs of being sent back to the Junior league.

There are plenty of scouts though, who insist that Smits' game (at least in the offensive end) won't translate well to the NHL. I've watched him, and some of those concerns are overblown, but some are legit; his game is quite chaotic right now, very high-risk, and very active and aggressive. He won't be able to hold on to the puck as much as he does right now when he's in North America, won't have the room to slip around opponents, and won't have as much of a green light to rove and do whatever he wants. In addition, his retrievals and breakout passes are often very shaky, his decision-making is sometimes questionable, and his experiments often result in egregious giveaways.

That said, there's no doubt that Smits is a first-round talent, and may go in the top-20 easily. Even if he doesn't turn into Makar or Dahlin, he is still easily a top-4 defenseman in the making, and will still pile up plenty of points, while playing a solid two-way game- and there's plenty of hope for more. My bet is that he climbs the rankings, but I'm waiting until later in the season to anoint him the "next one". Just my opinion.

Smits seems to have that opinion across the board. My guess top twenty no question right now.

[ForeverFlameFan]

Can Verhoeff play both sides?

I would love a Verhoeff / Parekh pairing and Reschny as one of our 1-2 Cs and with familiarity with Verhoeff. Verhoeff is probably the guy I am after if there are a lot more centers with a few more warts but with high skill with the Vegas pick. Our scouts know what they're doing.

[traptor]

is Pietrangelo a fair comp for Verhoeff?

[Vinny01]

I have had a feeling in my gut since before the season started we were getting McKenna. Maybe it was something I ate but I have had this feeling and it is only getting stronger. Who knows maybe we get him with the 4th overall pick and he joins Wright and Jones as 2 guys touted to go number 1 fall to 4. In Jones case it was pretty clear MacKinnon had overtaken him but Wright was still a surprise to me at the time.

[KootenayFlamesFan]

Originally Posted by traptor

is Pietrangelo a fair comp for Verhoeff?

Probably not too far off imo. About the same size, both shoot right handed. I would say KV is more physical, can play more of a 'bull in a China shop' style at times. KV is also only 17 right now, imagine 10 years from now when he's in his prime, he will be a very valuable player imo.

He's not a Makar offensively (few are obviously), KV's strength is that he just does pretty much everything quite well. If you can draft a big kid with that potential, it's no wonder he's being talked about as a top 3 pick.

[Calgary4LIfe]

Schaefer vs Verhoeff = Makar vs Hedman? Would that be fair, or is the gap a little larger?

[HighLifeMan]

Originally Posted by Sandman

I've been putting off doing any write-ups on Smits, because I'm taking a bit of a wait-and-see approach. There is undoubtedly a ton to like- he's big, skates well, and actually plays pretty solid defensively. Right now, he's playing over 20 minutes a night in the men's league, up to almost 25 on a few occasions, and shows no signs of being sent back to the Junior league.

There are plenty of scouts though, who insist that Smits' game (at least in the offensive end) won't translate well to the NHL. I've watched him, and some of those concerns are overblown, but some are legit; his game is quite chaotic right now, very high-risk, and very active and aggressive. He won't be able to hold on to the puck as much as he does right now when he's in North America, won't have the room to slip around opponents, and won't have as much of a green light to rove and do whatever he wants. In addition, his retrievals and breakout passes are often very shaky, his decision-making is sometimes questionable, and his experiments often result in egregious giveaways.

That said, there's no doubt that Smits is a first-round talent, and may go in the top-20 easily. Even if he doesn't turn into Makar or Dahlin, he is still easily a top-4 defenseman in the making, and will still pile up plenty of points, while playing a solid two-way game- and there's plenty of hope for more. My bet is that he climbs the rankings, but I'm waiting until later in the season to anoint him the "next one". Just my opinion.

Good to know - thanks for the information.

It's funny because the thing I came away most impressed by was his willingness and confidence to play with such assertiveness as a 17 year old in the Liiga after watching a handful of his full game shift-by-shift videos this year. I like the fact that he's willing to chip and chase after pucks as a defensemen, I like the fact that he isn't afraid to activate and even go net front in the offensive zone when the opportunity presents itself, I like the fact that he's disruptive defensively and consistently attacks forwards quickly by limiting their time and space. He certainly doesn't play a passive style of hockey in any zone - and that to me is a good thing.

In saying all of that - I have only seen a few games of tape, so I am sure those concerns are more than valid but I see a player that really has all of the physical tools you'd want in an all around defender that controls the game in all aspects. His upside appears to be on the extreme high end of this draft.

Smits will certainly be a fun player to keep tabs on this year.

[CliffFletcher]

Originally Posted by KootenayFlamesFan

Some of the concerns I've seen over his skating are overblown, imo. He's not Rico Fata fast, but his skating is not a big concern at all, from what I've seen.

He's big, can play PP, PK, last minute, etc. If he doesn't go #1 he's going to be one heck of a consolation prize.

By all accounts, Verhoeff’s skating is really good. It’s just that Schaeffer’s is elite+.

[simmer2]

Originally Posted by cracher

Was talking to an exec at hockey alberta today. She mentioned there is a u13 in lloydminster that is being watched very closely due to unprecedented talent. I don't wanna say the name of a child online, but anyone know anything? or is it altogether too early to tell...

My son plays in the U13 AAA league and it's crazy how good some of these 11 and 12 year olds are. There is a player on Lloyd in the Top 10. The 2nd overall point scorer in the league I'll get to watch in person on Sunday, he plays for Lethbridge. My son is defense, so I'll be telling him good luck!!

We did have a speaker come in to talk with parents about their child's hockey journey though.

One thing he said which stood out to attempt to tone down expectations "the best 12 year old is not the best 14 year old, is not the best 16 year old, is not the best 18 year old."

[Ba'alzamon]

Yeah, not sure why people leapt from "Verhoeff's skating isn't as good as Schaefer's" to "Verhoeff has skating issues."

Like, there's about six continents between those two sentiments lol.

[Vinny01]

SN November rankings have Verhoeff 1 and McKenna 2

[The EBUG's EBUG]

Originally Posted by Vinny01

SN November rankings have Verhoeff 1 and McKenna 2

Feels like this year is going to be an interesting one to look back on given the changes to the CHL/NCAA.

If McKenna is in Med Hat still he's probably at 40 points by now or something stupid, in which case are Cosentino and team worried about his "off-puck play and defensive awareness" or is he still the slam dunk 1st overall pick in the rankings? Always makes me laugh a bit seeing that kind of feedback as if the guy with 88 assists last year suddenly becomes zone illiterate in his own end, big question is if long term he's willing to play responsibly as needed, couldn't really care less if he's not a shutdown winger at this point (or ever if he's that good offensively).

Might also be a situation where for 17 year olds, the 6'4, 212lbs stallion D man looks more comfortable right away than the 6'0, 165lbs winger against older and stronger competition.

Mckenna went bonkers last year after the World Juniors so it wouldn't shock me to see him do something similar here. Regardless I have no issues if he wants to go ahead and drop to us if we lose the lottery.

[Sandman]

Originally Posted by HighLifeMan

Good to know - thanks for the information.

It's funny because the thing I came away most impressed by was his willingness and confidence to play with such assertiveness as a 17 year old in the Liiga after watching a handful of his full game shift-by-shift videos this year. I like the fact that he's willing to chip and chase after pucks as a defensemen, I like the fact that he isn't afraid to activate and even go net front in the offensive zone when the opportunity presents itself, I like the fact that he's disruptive defensively and consistently attacks forwards quickly by limiting their time and space. He certainly doesn't play a passive style of hockey in any zone - and that to me is a good thing.

In saying all of that - I have only seen a few games of tape, so I am sure those concerns are more than valid but I see a player that really has all of the physical tools you'd want in an all around defender that controls the game in all aspects. His upside appears to be on the extreme high end of this draft.

Smits will certainly be a fun player to keep tabs on this year.

You definitely aren’t wrong. He’s a 17 year old playing over 20 minutes per night against men, and looks uncommonly confident and unafraid to try things.