The 2025 Draft is upon us and we have a quick review of the top prospects and what we think teams will do. Any big trades to come? Also we’ll have a look at free agency to see who are the biggest targets and which teams will be most active. Lastly, the NHL leaked some changes for the 2026 season and the expected CBA MOU that may be announced this week.
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Title Player Brad Boyes – 505 career reg season points
News
Some big changes coming for 2026!
Draft June 27, 28 – decentralized as discussed last week
Free Agency July 1
Trades
Evander Kane to Vancouver for 4th round pick
Trevor Zegras to Flyers for Ryan Poehling, 2nd (via CBJ), 2026 4th
Mason Marchment to Seattle for 4th, 2026 3rd
Reacquire question – could Colorado reacquire Rantanen – since salary retained in the transaction they can’t acquire for a full year
Draft Picks
12 – MTL
11 – PIT
10 – ANA, BUF, CHI, PHI
3 -STL
2 – COL
Guess the 5th
DRAFT PREVIEW
Expected
1. Matthew Schaefer, D (Erie Otters, OHL)
Expected Draft Position: No. 1 overall – New York Islanders
Consensus top prospect—elite skating, offensive instincts from the blue line, and ceiling as a potential franchise defenseman nhl.com+15espn.com+15timesofindia.indiatimes.com+15nypost.com. Nearly every analyst ranks him #1 , and it’s widely expected he’ll be the Islanders’ pick reuters.com+1timesofindia.indiatimes.com+1.
2. Michael Misa, C (Saginaw Spirit, OHL)
Projected Pick: No. 2 – San Jose Sharks
A dynamic, high-IQ center—compared to Tavares and Stamkos—with 134 points in 65 OHL gamesnhl.com+15espn.com+15nhl.com+15. Most mocks see San Jose taking him after landing pick #2reuters.com+6espn.com+6nypost.com+6.
3. James Hagens, C (Boston College, NCAA)
Prediction: No. 3 or 4 – Chicago Blackhawks or Nashville Predators
A shifty, playmaking center with solid upside; ranked 3rd overall by NHL.comreuters.com+14bcinterruption.com+14nypost.com+14. Some mocks slot him to Chicago at #3nhl.com+15espn.com+15nhl.com+15, others to Nashville at #4 sbnation.com+3reuters.com+3nypost.com+3. Islanders have also shown interest but would need to trade up tankathon.com+15reuters.com+15nypost.com+15.
4. Porter Martone, RW (Brampton, OHL)
Expected Pick: No. 4/5 – Depending on trade flow
A big physical winger (6′3″, 205 lb) with scoring and playmaking chops. Ranked 3rd–4th in many boardsmynhldraft.com+15espn.com+15nhl.com+15. Could slide into pick #4 depending on who skips in front.
5. Caleb Desnoyers, C (Moncton Wildcats, QMJHL)
Possible Draft Spot: Top-5 or just outside
A reliable two-way centreman with scoring touch. Ranked consistently 5th across Central Scouting and consensus rankings timesofindia.indiatimes.com+4nhl.com+4reuters.com+4nhl.com. Could appeal to teams needing depth down the middle.
Others to watch
Anton Frondell, C (Djurgårdens IF, Sweden): Big-bodied center with pro experiencenhl.com+1reddit.com+1timesofindia.indiatimes.com+7espn.com+7tankathon.com+7. Mocked to Blackhawks at #3 by some washingtonpost.com+15en.wikipedia.org+15espn.com+15.
Porter Martone noted above.
Jake O’Brien (C), Roger McQueen (F), Brady Martin (F), Victor Eklund (F): rounds 6–10 in consensus rankingsreuters.com+8tankathon.com+8reddit.com+8.
Kashawn Aitcheson, D (Barrie Colts, OHL): Power defender with goal-scoring upside, ranked top 15 consensusreddit.com+1en.wikipedia.org+1.
Ivan Ryabkin, C (Muskegon, USHL): Top Russian center in the draft reddit.com+1en.wikipedia.org+1.
Logan Hensler, D (Wisconsin, NCAA): Strong NCAA defenseman buzz, targeted mid-first round
McKenzie Rankings
Heavy Canadian content in first round
Comparison to recent years.
2025 – Projected 19
2024 – 18
2023 – 12
2022 – 9
2021 – 18
Oilers – Picks – 3, 4, 6, 7 – looking for strong wingers – Ethan Czata (Niagara) or Aiden Lane (Brampton)
Leafs – Picks – 2,3, 5,5, 6, 7 – Matthew Gard (WHL), Zach Amico (USHL) Ethan Czata
Connections
Last Week – Patrick Maroon, Cory Stillman, Claude Lemieux, Ed Litzenberger
Free Agency – https://www.sportsnet.ca/nhl/article/nhls-top-12-ufas-of-2025-latest-rumours-reports/
Marner house hunting in Vegas…
Other teams rumoured – SJS, ANA, LAK, DAL, CAR
Bennett, – said he wasn’t going anywhere but deal not done
Ekblad – seems most likely to leave…
Marchand
Will Florida convince them all to stay for less money and keep the band together?
Tavares
Boeser
Ehlers
Watch Detroit – they need to move the needle this year
Summer Schedule for ScuttlePuck?
Offseason suggestions for topics?
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