2026 NHL Draft Thread

[Sandman]

Draft Thoughts:

Mar.1st: The Portland Winterhawks have been in a free-fall for the last three months- they were sixth in the WHL Standings at the beginning of December, but have tumbled all the way down to 13th-place. In early-January, just before the trade deadline, the 'Hawks sold off their top defenseman, Carter Sotheran, to the Edmonton Oil Kings for 20 year-old D Niko Tsakumis and two picks, and then traded forward Tyson Yaremko for another two picks two days later. Though he was instantly given more ice-time and responsibility with the departure of Sotheran, the move did nothing for LD Will McLaughlin, who was second on the team in scoring by D at the time, as he went the next 10 games after the trade without a point. Thankfully, he has been able to rebound somewhat, with 6 points in the last 10 matches, for a grand-total of 8 goals and 27 points in 59 contests- which prorates to 31 in 68. He is #91 for North American Skaters in Central Scouting's Mid-Term Rankings.

The "C"-rated McLaughlin (6'1.75",188lbs) seems to have settled in nicely to life in the WHL in this, his rookie season- after spending the whole of 2024-25 with the AJHL's Drumheller Dragons. The Canmore-born rearguard has shown himself to be a poised, responsible, two-way presence; he is first on the team, with a +11. McLaughlin is not a very physical player, preferring to do most of his business with smart positioning, constant scanning, and an active stick. He is a smooth, projectable skater, but he could use upgrades to his acceleration and top-speed, although he comfortably carries the puck up-ice with poise and confidence, and is an excellent puck-mover with his accurate passing skill. His edges are strong, and give him good agility and maneuverability to transition quickly, pivot effortlessly, and surf across the ice laterally to seal off lanes. Defensively, he is good against the rush, and highly aware in shutting down opposing teams' top players; he is used on the PK, and in a match-up role. McLaughlin reads the play acutely to position himself well, and takes away time and space from attackers effectively. In the Hlinka, McLaughlin was the second-highest scoring D for Team USA, with 3 points in 5 games; he displays a willingness in league-play to join the rush, and will pinch into the zone to keep the puck alive, attack open space, or look for passing seams. While he keeps things relatively simple, without the high-end creativity to make many high-end, fancy plays, he is well-versed in deception to manipulate defenders, owns good instincts and passing vision, and will use cut-backs and delays to throw-off opponents, or to draw pressure to open space. He does a good job of quarterbacking the play from the line, and possesses a hard shot that he can get on-net with good frequency. Hopefully, he keeps the offensive numbers flowing, in order to avoid being labelled too "vanilla", and he needs to get his battle-level up in order to win more 50/50 contests. Look for him in the middle-rounds.