A New Mock Draft Has the Blackhawks Making a Fascinating Selection - Bleacher Nation

A 2026 NHL mock draft rotates selections among multiple analysts, with Chicago receiving the No. 4 pick. The top five selections include Chase Reid to Toronto, Carson Carels to San Jose, Gavin McKenna to Vancouver, and Alberts Šmits to Chicago, followed by Ivar Stenberg to the Rangers. Two notable drops occur for top forwards, with McKenna falling to Vancouver at No. 3 and Stenberg slipping to No. 5 after Chicago. The Chicago pick is justified by Šmits’ high ranking, fit with the team’s defensive depth, and projection as a heavy-minutes, two-way defender who can contribute on both special teams. The alternative considered is Stenberg, but the lean favors Šmits due to positional and roster fit.

"Smits is my No. 2-ranked player, but he fits here not only on talent but also seamlessly into Chicago's depth chart, which has a lot of good young defensemen but could use a premier name on the left side. Smits projects as a heavy-minutes, two-way defender who can play on both special teams. I would be tempted to take Stenberg here for Chicago, who need more high-end skill to surround Connor Bedard with. Between Bedard, Stenberg, Frank Nazar and Roman Kantserov, it would be a very small top six, though. Given I think the two players are rather close on pure ability, my lean is to take Smits for all the above reasons."

"Yes, in their mock draft there are two shocking drops from top forwards in this year's class: McKenna to Vancouver at No. 3, and Ivar Stenberg to the Rangers after the Blackhawks at No. 5. Here's what Pronman wrote about the pick: Smits is my No. 2-ranked player, but he fits here not only on talent but also seamlessly into Chicago's depth chart, which has a lot of good young defensemen but could use a premier name on the left side."

"I'm not saying he went off the board because of the player he selected for the Blackhawks specifically, but because of the overall draft order the guys had coming off the board. Here's how they had the top five picks playing out in their mock draft (with which writer had each selection): Toronto (Pronman) - Chase Reid, RHD; San Jose (Bultman) - Carson Carels, LHD; Vancouver (Wheeler) - Gavin McKenna, LW; BLACKHAWKS (Pronman) - Alberts Šmits, LHD."

"I know there are going to be plenty of Blackhawks fans (and NHL fans in general) who will tell you there's no way Stenberg falls past Chicago at No. 4 overall - heck, most fans (especially on Twitter) will tell you confidently he doesn't make it to the Hawks at all. So the order of selections in this mock draft was fascinating."

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