While the 2026 NHL Draft for the Blue Jackets was heavily overshadowed by news and rumors surrounding their two star players, the team should be pretty happy with how things went. After all, they clearly targeted a specific archetype with the players they selected over the weekend.
They had a lot of options with their first round pick, but ultimately decided that using it themselves was preferable to any other option placed in front of them. That's because the player they coveted fell into their laps.
At #14 overall, they took hulking Finnish winger Oscar Hemming, a player that many thought could be a top-5 pick in this year's class. He fell down the draft board a bit because of a contract dispute that was out of his control. That may be good fortune for the Blue Jackets.
Hemming is already 6'5" and 200 pounds, boasting a near-NHL ready frame. His shot is very good, and the hope is that he could become a top-two line winger for this team at some point in the not-so-distant future. He won't likely ever drive a line, but he could be a 25-30 goal sniper, if all goes well.
However, even if he doesn't reach that ceiling, he's what the scouting community calls a "high floor" player. He's a wrecking ball on the ice, that will be a strong forechecker capable of playing in the bottom six in the NHL, even if his offense doesn't fully translate.
That pick signaled a trend for the Blue Jackets at this year's draft.
The Jackets didn't pick again until #94 overall, late in the third round. At that spot, they nabbed Sarnia Sting center Alessandro Di Iiorio. His scouting report? Essentially, the same as Hemming, but with a much lower ceiling.
Di Iiorio is touted as a solid all-around player, with an above average shot. He's also a bit of a project, with the eventual upside of a bottom-two line center in the NHL. I like this pick, because you can never have too many talented centers. His scoring is going to improve, so I can see him being a rising asset within the organization. They got good value here.
One round later, the Jackets stepped in and selected Youngstown winger Evan Jardine. He's committed to the Ohio State Buckeyes this fall, where he will look to continue his development as-wait for it-a depth/energy winger.
In round 5, the team finally bucked their trend of picking complimentary forwards. They snatched up Edmonton Oil Kings goaltender Parker Snell. Even though this was different in this year's class, we should not be surprised: Waddell has now taken a goaltender in each of his drafts.
The team made two sixth round picks, taking Finnish forward Anttoni Uronen (you guessed it), and overage defenseman Jonas Woo. Woo is the only real "boom or bust" prospect picked by the Blue Jackets in this year's draft, so he may come with some fanfare as time goes on.
Finally, in the last round of the draft, the Jackets picked Filip Novak, going right back into their trend of two-way forwards. All of the forwards they took have size and can skate. Clearly, they had something in mind this summer; as they did two summers ago when they took a bunch of big right-shot defensemen.
It will be years before we know the full outcome of this year's draft crop, but I thought they got some decent value; especially with their first two picks. Neither guy is going to become an elite scorer, but I think both have strong NHL potential. And, when you're not picking at the top of the draft, there is nothing wrong with finding players like that.
In the coming days, we will have full write-ups on each of these players, containing scouting reports and development plans. Stay tuned!
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