Senators' 2026 Draft Blueprint Came Into Full Focus On Saturday
· Yahoo Sports
After a frantic Friday that featured two first-round picks, two trades and a contract extension, Saturday was a little quieter for the Ottawa Senators.
But while there wasn't nearly as much drama, day two of the NHL Draft revealed a lot about organizational need. When a team spends its first five picks on skilled forwards, it's difficult not to conclude that management believes the organization needs more skill up front.
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The Senators had three picks in round three, then the standard single pick in rounds four, five, and six. Just as they did in round one with Jonas Lagerberg Hoen and Jaxon Cover, the Sens used all of their third-round picks on skilled forwards.
72 W Adam Nemec (OHL, Sudbury)
87 C Oscar Holmertz (SWE-Jr, Linkoping HC)
91 W Louis-Felix Bourque (QMJHL, Drummondville)
110 G Elliot Lennon (MA-HS, Deerfield)
151 D Harris Pangretitsch (OHL, Sault Ste. Marie)
183 D Alexander Grunin (RUS-MHL, Sibirskie Snaipery Novosibirsk)
72 W Adam Nemec (OHL, Sudbury)
The Sens opened day 2 of the draft at 72 with number 71 from the Sudbury Wolves, Adam Nemec. Nemec certainly comes from fine NHL bloodlines as his older brother, Simon, was the second overall pick in the 2022 NHL Draft. Simon, an RFA, was just traded from New Jersey to Calgary.
The younger Nemec started his draft year in Slovakia, playing 28-games with HK Nitra. But being a men's league, he didn't get a ton of ice time, which wasn't ideal for his NHL draft year. So after putting up five points in five games at the World Juniors, he shifted to the OHL, right in the middle of the season, to play for the Sudbury Wolves.
If that proved to be a culture shock, it didn't show. Nemec, a 6-foot, 173 pound winger, put up 35 points in 31 games for the Wolves.
87 C Oscar Holmertz (SWE-Jr, Linkoping HC)
The Senators have suddenly developed a fondness for Swedish players.
In the last week, they've acquired winger William Eklund, goalie Samuel Ersson, winger Andre Burakovsky, and at the draft they made Jonas Lagerberg Hoen their first pick at 25th overall.
On Saturday, they went with another Swedish forward at 87, drafting Oscar Holmertz. The 6-foot, 187 pound centre had 34 points in 36 games with Linkoping HC Jr. He also got into 11 games with Linkoping's men's team.
91 W Louis-Felix Bourque (QMJHL, Drummondville)
The Senators stayed with their forward theme with their final third-round pick, taking Louis-Felix Bourque. Bourque had 24 goals and 49 points in 54 games for Drummondville in the Q this season. At just 17, he already possesses NHL size at 6-foot-2 and 214 pounds.
110 G Elliot Lennon (MA-HS, Deerfield)
In round four, the Senators decided to end the run of forwards by adding to their goaltending depth, drafting 6-foot-six high schooler, Elliot Lennon. As you might imagine, Lennon posted fantastic stats in his three years at Deerfield Academy. He's committed to Brown University for the 2027-28 season. He'll play this fall for the USHL's Madison Capitols. He suited up for two games with the Caps this season.
151 D Harris Pangretitsch (OHL, Sault Ste. Marie)
At this stage in the draft, the Senators turned their attention to shutdown defensemen with size, and at 6-foot-4, 219 pounds, the right-shot Pangretitsch certainly fits that bill. He won't drive offence, but his improvements through the season were obvious.
Pangretitsch also has a strong academic reputation, reportedly carrying a 95 average in school.
183 D Alexander Grunin (RUS-MHL, Sibirskie Snaipery Novosibirsk)
At 6-foot-4, 185 pounds, Grunin still has some filling out to do, but he's also seen as a shutdown defenseman with good mobility. He scored 15 points in 44 games with the wonderfully-named Sibirskie Snaipery Novosibirsk. (RUS-MHL).
Dylan Griffing from Elite Prospects mentioned on social media that Grunin is very raw, but hyper-mobile and one of the biggest wild cards in the draft, but also had a scary year-end, getting stretchered off the ice during the Russian U18 Finals. He played in the following game, but only for a few minutes.
The Sens' 2026 draft class paints a fairly clear picture.
The team prioritized offensive skill early, leaned heavily into European talent, and then rounded out the class with size on D. As with any draft, it will be years before we can properly evaluate these choices, but the organization's blueprint was hard to miss.
By Steve Warne
The Hockey News