Kevin O'Connell will be as involved in the G.M. search as ownership wants
Kevin O'Connell to be involved in Vikings GM search process
The San Jose Sharks hold the No. 2 pick in the 2026 NHL Draft, with experts favoring either Ivar Stenberg or Chase Reid. Gavin McKenna is projected as the consensus first overall pick.
Forward or defense? Ivar Stenberg or Chase Reid?
These are a couple of the questions for GM Mike Grier now that the San Jose Sharks have the No. 2 pick in the 2026 NHL Draft.
Winger Gavin McKenna is the consensus first-overall.
So immediately post-lottery, four options have risen to the top of NHL expertsâ mock drafts.
Steven Ellis from Daily Faceoff and NHL.comâs Mike G. Morreale, are on Team Stenberg.
The winger has spent most of his season with Frölunda HC of the Swedish Hockey League this season, where heâs played 43 games with 11 goals and 22 assists. The 5-foot-11 Swede also represented Sweden at multiple levels, including at the U-20 World Juniors, where he recorded 4 goals and 6 assists through 7 games played.
âStenberg is strong with the puck, has a fantastic shot and might have the second-best hockey sense of anyone in the draft behind McKenna,â Ellis wrote. âHad one of the best seasons by a U-19 player in recent SHL history.â
Stenberg projects as an all-around first-line winger.
Morrealle wouldnât be surprised if the Sharks traded down and picked a defenseman.
Speaking of defense, thereâs blueliner Chase Reid.
Reid played for the Soo Greyhounds of the OHL this season, playing 45 games with 18 goals and 30 assists. Heâs set to join Michigan State in the fall, and is reportedly already training with the team on campus.
Chris Peters from FloSports, Sam Cosentino of Sportsnet, Scott Wheeler , and Craig Button see the Sharks drafting Reid at the No. 2 spot.
The top prospects for the Sharks include Ivar Stenberg and Chase Reid, with Gavin McKenna expected to be the first overall pick.
The Sharks are considering both forward and defense positions for their No. 2 pick in the draft.
The No. 2 pick allows the Sharks to select a highly-rated prospect, potentially shaping the team's future direction.
Gavin McKenna is widely regarded as the consensus first overall pick in the 2026 NHL Draft.
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Peters and Wheeler rank Reidâs future upside as somewhat higher than Sam Dickinsonâs, so adding Reid to the San Jose Sharks roster could give them a potent one-two punch, Reid taking the lead.
Wheeler wrote that Reid âfeels tailor-made to beâŠfuture RHD1 and PP1 QBâ for the Sharks going forward.
Fit was key to Petersâ thoughts as well.
âWhile Ivar Stenberg is a strong [pick], the opportunity to add another cornerstone to their defense is an opportunity San Jose shouldnât pass up,â Peters wrote. âHe plays a style that fits almost perfectly with the direction San Jose is heading in.â
Button, on the San Jose Hockey Now Podcast, compared Reid to Zach Werenski: âHeâs got kind of a similar style of play to Zach Werenski. Somebody that can drive play from the moment he gets the puck.â
Beyond Reid and Stenberg, Adam Kimelman from NHL.com raised Alberts Smitsâ name.
The Latvian defenseman featured as the youngest player at the Olympics in February, where he recorded 2 assists in 4 games. And in 38 games with Jukurit in the Finnish Hockey League, Liiga, he had six goals and seven assists.
âHeâs a strong skater, has a high-end offensive game and his maturity on and off the ice â he lived on his own at age 13 when he left his native Latvia to play in Finland â makes him a possibility to play in the NHL as soon as next season,â Kimelman wrote.
Staying on the blueline, Cam Robinson of Elite Prospects thinks that the San Jose Sharks will select Carson Carels.
âArguably the most NHL-ready blueliner in the crop, Carels brings an impressive two-way, physical game that could translate to a top pairing role down the line,â Robinson wrote.
Center Caleb Malhotra and defenseman Keaton Verhoeff could also be in the mix for the San Jose Sharks.
The Sharks have a over a month to make their decision at the NHL Draft on Jun. 26.
The post Sharksâ Mock Draft Check: Experts Leaning Toward One Player at No. 2 appeared first on San Jose Hockey Now.