NHL Draft 2026 live updates: Draft order, start time, how to watch and top prospects as Leafs pick No. 1

The 2026 NHL Draft comes amid a frantic early offseason of massive trades and on the heels of the Carolina Hurricanes’ second Stanley Cup championship. Now, the Toronto Maple Leafs take center stage with the No. 1 pick, widely projected to be Penn State forward Gavin McKenna. Will he indeed go first? If so, who comes after? Will it be Sweden’s Ivar Stenberg, Boston University commit Caleb Malhotra or someone else? Follow along with our live updates of the NHL Draft, which begins at 7 p.m. ET at Buffalo’s KeyBank Center.

See our live tracker and check out our full interactive draft guide here.

Follow along all day for live analysis, news, reaction, intel and more from our crew of NBA reporters.

• When: 7 p.m. ET
• Where: KeyBank Center, Buffalo, N.Y.
• TV and streaming: ESPN and ESPN+ (U.S.); Sportsnet and TVA Sports (Canada)

Here’s the full first-round draft order:

1. Toronto Maple Leafs
2. San Jose Sharks
3. Vancouver Canucks
4. Buffalo Sabres
5. New York Rangers
6. Calgary Flames
7. Seattle Kraken
8. Winnipeg Jets
9. San Jose Sharks
10. Nashville Predators
11. St. Louis Blues
12. New Jersey Devils
13. New York Islanders
14. Columbus Blue Jackets
15. St. Louis Blues
16. St. Louis Blues
17. Los Angeles Kings
18. Washington Capitals
19. Utah Mammoth
20. Buffalo Sabres
21. Philadelphia Flyers
22. Pittsburgh Penguins
23. Boston Bruins
24. Vancouver Canucks
25. Ottawa Senators
26. New York Rangers
27. San Jose Sharks
28. Montreal Canadiens
29. St. Louis Blues
30. Calgary Flames
31. Carolina Hurricanes
32. Ottawa Senators

Rounds 2-7 begin at 11 a.m. Saturday on NHL Network, ESPN+ and Sportsnet.