Scouts Reveal Their 2026 Draft Favorites and Biggest Surprises

The scouting community is weighing in on the 2026 NHL Draft, and there's clearly some divergence between consensus picks and the players who caught evaluators' eyes. Every draft produces surprises - selections that confound the conventional wisdom and players who fall further than expected. This roundtable gives you the inside perspective on which prospects scouts genuinely loved and which picks left them scratching their heads.