How many projected top-10 2026 draft prospects can jump to the NHL right away?

With the 2026 NHL Draft less than a month away, fans are gearing up to see who their teams will pick, with the hopes of some of them making an impact sooner rather than later.

The two big-name prospects heading into this year’s event are Gavin McKenna and Ivar Stenberg. Both have immense talent, with many expecting both to play in the NHL next year. However, there’s wonderment about how many players taken inside the top this year will actually be playing in the big leagues when the puck drops on the 2026-27 season.

On Friday’s edition of Daily Faceoff LIVE, Daily Faceoff draft expert Steven Ellis joined Tyler Yaremchuk and Steve Peters to discuss how many prospects inside his top-10 will be competing for NHL spots next fall.

Steven Ellis: I think McKenna is definitely, I’d say, as close to a lock as you’re going to find. Stenberg could definitely do it. I think Viggo Björck can go to the NHL next year. I think given the system in Sweden, I don’t know how much more he has to prove at that level. At the same time, they could take whoever the team that drafts him could take the Chicago route with Anton Frondell and say, ‘Hey we know you could probably play in the NHL, but we don’t really need you right now.’ I think it really depends on what team drafts him, and they’re outlook is going forward. I think if Calgary picks him…give him a chance. Why not? Let’s see what happens.

I’d say Alberts Smits could. I don’t know if he will, but I think he’d be NHL-ready. I think the thing that’s really complicating things is the college side of things. Tthere are guys that are in that list that are not committed to college that could end up going play in college. Who knows? There’s other guys who might say, ‘You know what? We don’t need to do college. We go straight to the NHL.’

I feel very confident that McKenna and Stenberg, for sure, will be in the NHL. I think Smits and Björck can make it work, but that would be about it.

You can watch the full segment and entire episode here…