Panthers select Simas Ignatavicius No. 40 overall at the 2026 NHL Draft

The Florida Panthers have selected forward Simas Ignatavicius with the No. 40 overall selection of the 2026 NHL Entry Draft.

Ignatavicius was projected to be selected around 35th overall on average across all of the main draft rankings, going as high as 27th and as low as 52nd. He was also ranked 10th among European skaters by NHL Central Scouting. Daily Faceoff prospect analyst Steven Ellis projected him to go at consensus at 35th overall. Ignatavicius becomes the third Lithuanian player ever drafted to the NHL, joining Darius Kasparaitis (fifth overall, 1992) and Dainius Zubrus (15th overall, 1996).

Ellis had this to say about Ignatavicius in his most recent draft rankings:

“We don’t typically see many prospects coming out of the top league in Switzerland. But the Lithuanian-born winger has drawn a ton of attention from scouts this year. He’s a 6-foot-3 forward having a solid season in Switzerland’s top league and has been downright dominant internationally. Ignatavicius is so versatile, finding so many different ways to impact the play both with and without the puck. He’s good defensively, has a great shot release, has obvious muscle and is incredibly skilled, too. Is Ignatavicius notable because he’s a big dude playing pro hockey? Or is there something truly here? That’s the question.“

Ignatavicius spent the majority of his 2025-26 season with Geneve-Servette HC in the National League. In 52 games with the team, he had seven goals and six assists for 13 points as Geneve-Servette finished third in the NL with a 31-18-3 record. He also had two goals and one assist for three points in 11 playoff games as Geneve-Servette were eliminated in the semifinals.

Ignatavicius was also loaned to HC Thurgau of the Swiss League, where he had seven goals and four assists for 11 points in eight games.

Ignatavicius also played for Geneve-Servette’s U21 team, where he had four goals and three assists for seven points in four games, along with one assist in two relegation games.

While Ignatavicius was born in Memphis, Tennessee, he has represented Lithuania on the international stage at numerous events.