Welcome to the 2026 HabsWorld Final Draft rankings. Highlighted over this article series are 64 of the up-and-coming talents at the draft and how their profile aligns with the Habs priorities within the draft.
Sometimes, Montreal’s management have moved picks in this round to acquire players they think can help their team like they did when they got Alex Newhook. Other years, they aggressively move picks to improve their selection rank when they see a player they covet remain available such as last year which yielded them Alexander Zharovsky. They will be hard pressed to recreate that magic in this year’s draft as they only hold pick #61 in the second round. I guess they’ll have to recreate some 2022 magic and find this year’s Lane Hutson.
#33 – William Hakansson – Lulea HF (SHL) – LHD
Start of season rank: 26 Midseason rank: 25
#34 –Brooks Rogowski – Oshawa Generals (OHL) – C
Start of season rank: 55 Midseason rank: 34
#35 – Casey Mutryn – USNTDP (USHL) – RW
Start of season rank: 36 Midseason rank: 36
#36 – Ryan Roobroeck – Niagara IceDogs (OHL) – LW
Start of season rank: 10 Midseason rank: 24
#37 – Niklas Aaram-Olsen – Orebro HK (SHL) – RW
Start of season rank: 23 Midseason rank: 30
#38 – Adam Valentini – University of Michigan (NCAA) – LW
Start of season rank: 30 Midseason rank: 35
#39 – Adam Goljer – HK Dukla Trencin (Slovakia) – RHD
Start of season rank: 52 Midseason rank: 46
#40 – Nikita Shcherbakov – Tolpar Ufa (MHL) – LHD
Start of season rank: 41 Midseason rank: 38
#41 – Simas Ignatavicius – Genève-Servette (Swiss National) – C
Start of season rank: NA Midseason rank: 49
#42 – Ryder Cali – North Bay Battalion (OHL) – C
Start of season rank: 64 Midseason rank: 63
#43 – Jaxon Cover – London Knights (OHL) – LW
Start of season rank: 46 Midseason rank: 39
#44 – Gleb Pugachyov – Chaika Nizhny Novgorod (MHL) – RW
Start of season rank – 63 Midseason rank: 59
#45 – Tobias Trejbal – Youngstown Phantoms (USHL) – G
Start of season rank: NA Midseason rank: NA
#46 – Ben MacBeath – Calgary Hitmen (WHL) – LHD
Start of season rank: NA Midseason rank: 55
#47 – Maksim Sokolovskii – London Knights (OHL) – LHD
Start of season rank: NA Midseason rank: NA
#48 – Tomas Chrenko – HK Nitra (Slovakia) – C
Start of season rank: 24 Midseason rank: 28
#36 – Ryan Roobroeck
Niagara Ice Dogs (OHL) – LW
The study of Roobroeck’s falling draft rank will someday be a case study should he find his game at the next level. At 6’3, no one will question his size, but what appears to be consensus is that he checks out for large portions of games. His shot is elite and he can release it even when space is very limited, so while the intensity issue does explain a drop, this massive a drop from a potential top-10 slot to completely outside the first round is uncommon. While everyone would like to see him play to his size way more, I think the biggest factor was that Niagara did not think he was engaged enough to keep him at centre in the OHL, and the move to the wing did not simplify his game as much as it should have.
He scored 58 points in 49 games after notching 87 points in 64 games last season, a year that had him destined to be a much higher ranked prospect. Roobroeck remains an extremely intriguing boom-or-bust pick because the talent is undoubtedly there. I wonder if there’s something else to help explain this extreme drop, or is it simply the league souring on players with this profile? After all, we saw Lynden Lakovic suffer a bit of the same fate last season. He’s ranked in the second round, but boy is he ever tempting to the Habs at that 28 spot.
#42 – Ryder Cali
North Bay Battalion (OHL) – C
When Cali was projected as a late second-rounder earlier this season, I wrote that he was unlikely to play up the middle once in the pro ranks. He’s been able to play up to his 6’2 frame while maintaining a physical edge and an impressive puck pursuit motor. This has opened some to his ability to perhaps remain at centre at the next level. One thing is certain; he remains a projected bottom-of-the-lineup player that will make it thanks to the right attitude and aptitudes to succeed in that role since he only produced 36 points in 47 OHL games last season.
#49 – Victor Plante – USNTDP (USHL) – LW
Start of season rank: NA Midseason rank: 43
#50 – Pierce Mbuyi – Owen Sound Attack (OHL) – LW
Start of season rank: 33 Midseason rank: 33
#51 – Jakub Vanecek – Tri-City Americans (WHL) – LHD
Start of season rank: NA Midseason rank: 33
#52 – Thomas Vandenberg – Ottawa 67’s (OHL) – C
Start of season rank: NA Midseason rank: 54
#53 – Samu Alalauri – Lahti (Finland U20) – RHD
Start of season rank: NA Midseason rank: NA
#54 – Chase Harrington – Spokane Chiefs (WHL) – LW
Start of season rank: 47 Midseason rank: 62
#55 – Alessandro Di Iorio – Sarnia Sting (OHL) – C
Start of season rank: 29 Midseason rank: 40
#56 – Dmitri Borichev – Loko-76 Yaroslavl (MHL) – G
Start of season rank: NA Midseason rank: NA
#57 – Rudolfs Berzkalns – Muskegon Lumberjacks (USHL) – C
Start of season rank: NA Midseason rank: NA
#58 – Alexander Bilecki – Kitchener Rangers (OHL) – LHD
Start of season rank: NA Midseason rank: NA
#59 – Mattias Vanhanen – Everett Silvertips (WHL) – LW
Start of season rank: NA Midseason rank: NA
#60 – Giorgios Pantelas – Brandon Wheat Kings (WHL) – RHD
Start of season rank: 44 Midseason rank: 42
#61 – Blake Zielinski – Des Moines Buccaneers (USHL) – RW
Start of season rank: NA Midseason rank: NA
#62 – Adam Nemec – HK Nitra (Slovakia) – LW
Start of season rank: 37 Midseason rank: 45
#63 – Adam Andersson – Leksands IF (Finland U20) – C
Start of season rank: NA Midseason rank: NA
#64 – Tomas Galvas – Liberec (Czechia Elite League) – LHD
Start of season rank: NA Midseason rank: NA
#53 – Thomas Vandenberg
Ottawa 67’s (OHL) – C
This 6’0 pivot scored 50 points as a rookie in the OHL. He’s one of the youngest players in the draft. In fact, if he were eight days younger, he would only be eligible for the 2027 draft. As a rookie top-line centre in the OHL, he won 59% of his faceoffs this season. He shows great speed and off-puck awareness while not really being big enough or shifty enough for a smaller guy which has many scouts labelling him as a boom-or-bust selection. I see more or a Jake Evans product should Vandenberg be open to that possibility for himself.
#57 – Rudolfs Berzkalns
Muskegon Lumberjacks (USHL) – CLW
The Latvian-born Berzkalns has played most of his minor hockey in the States and he’s committed to Boston College in the Fall. At 6’4, he is a tall yet lanky centre who has many teams salivating so I have a gut feeling he ends up selected prior to this 57th rank. Teams always assume they can develop a player with this size once he fills out and matures mentally. Still, he was offensively limited to 25 points in 48 games in the USHL, so there are questions about the ceiling despite the size of the player which is likely why he finds himself as a late second-round pick. A nice gamble to take if he remains available for the Habs.