The 2026 NHL Draft concluded with a record 24 Swedish players chosen across seven rounds, including seven in the first round alone.
Frölunda forward Ivar Stenberg was the highest selected Swede, taken second overall by the San Jose Sharks. Other first-round picks included Viggo Björck at eighth to the Winnipeg Jets, Alexander Command at 12th to the New Jersey Devils, Malte Gustafsson at 13th to the New York Islanders, Elton Hermansson at 19th to the Los Angeles Kings, Jonas Lagerberg Hoen at 25th to the Ottawa Senators and Marcus Nordmark at 28th to the Anaheim Ducks.
The seven first-round selections set a new record, surpassing the previous mark of six that had been reached multiple times before. Carolina Hurricanes added two more Swedes in the second round with William Håkansson and Wiggo Sörensson.
Additional selections came in later rounds for clubs including the Toronto Maple Leafs, Minnesota Wild, Edmonton Oilers, Boston Bruins, Utah Mammoth, Colorado Avalanche, Tampa Bay Lightning, Nashville Predators, Seattle Kraken, Vancouver Canucks and Chicago Blackhawks. Örebro, MoDo, Djurgården, Leksand, Färjestad and Växjö each contributed multiple players from their junior programs.
