Carolina Hurricanes 2026 Draft Preview and Other News

Carolina holds four picks in the draft.

In a little over 24 hours, Nick and I will be live for our second ever draft live stream! Before that, though, I wanted to write a quick preview and toss out a few names that I like in the draft, plus go over some of the prospect and team news that has happened over the past week or so.

2026 NHL Draft

Carolina has picks 31, 105, 165 and 192 in this upcoming draft class. Obviously, with the lack of high end picks, this may very well end up being a fairly underwhelming class at the onset. However, as we’ve seen in most drafts other than 2023, Carolina will likely trade out of the first round and recoup some value with their picks in rounds 2 and 3.

Some available names include the following:

• Jack Hextall - another center prospect with decent compete and offensive skill. Would be available in the end of the first round.

• Nikita Scherbakov - he’s a solid defender and has good size, and he fits the mold of what Carolina has looked for out of defensemen in the draft over the past few years.

• Dmitri Borichev - I don’t know if the Hurricanes go with a goalie first for the second year in a row, but the team does have a need in goal.

• Brek Liske - If the Canes trade down once or twice, I could see Liske being an option. He played a smaller role on a good team this year and got way better as the time went along this year. Underrated puck skills at his size.

• Jaxon Cover - Cam Robinson mocked him to the Hurricanes at 31, but I can see him falling into the second and being available a little later.

• Gleb Pugachyov - He’s one of the more physical forwards in the draft and has super high compete. Offensive skills are a mixed bag, despite good results in the MHL this year.

Carolina’s needs heading into the draft are essentially the best players available. With so few picks, you’re just looking to take whoever gives you the best chance at making the NHL with that pick. Truly, the most interesting thing about the Canes’ draft will be what they decide to do with their first round pick. Moving it back and getting more picks would certainly make the draft day two stream more interesting, but I don’t think the Hurricanes care a whole lot about how drunk I get.

If I could create a wishlist for the Hurricanes in the draft, it’s for the team to draft at least one more goalie, then maybe another solid defenseman in the middle rounds. Carolina has a really solid pool already, and while certain prospects may not be getting as much hype from the public sphere as they should, they will eventually.

Prospect News and Rumors

• Noel Gunler has signed with Djurgardens in the SHL for two years. Gunler was drafted 41st overall by the Hurricanes in 2020 and never made it above a bottom six AHL role in his pro career with the Wolves. Injuries and an overall lack of consistency really hurt Gunler as a pro, and he’ll go down as a really bad second round pick for the Hurricanes.

• Noah Philp has signed with HV71 in Sweden. I was never going to be shocked if Philp left the Hurricanes, especially given their need for veterans with a bit more impact. But he played his role well after being claimed on waivers.

• Nicolas Deslauriers has signed a two year extension and Juuso Valimaki has signed a one year extension.

• After missing the on-ice portion of last year’s development camp, Kurban Limatov is returning for this year’s camp. Joining him are prospects Timur Kol and Roman Shokhrin, both sixth round picks in 2024. Both players have not played in North America yet, so this will be a good opportunity for fans to get a look at both players.

• Speaking of development camp, the Hurricanes announced the schedule for that. If you can go, I highly recommend. A lot of the camp is spent doing skating drills and other skills sessions, but it’s a good look at how an NHL team operates and you get to see some new faces. I will not be able to attend due to work, but I hope everyone has fun.

Alexander Nikishin

Alright, let’s talk about Alexander Nikishin. We’ve seen the rumors that the Hurricanes are at least seeing what the market is on Nikishin, and while nothing is imminent, it’s definitely worth talking about. It’s a complicated situation, after all. Nikishin turns 25 in October and his agents likely want a two year bridge deal that can walk him to UFA status. Carolina likely wants an eight year deal so they can have him signed long-term like the rest of the core is. There’s also the reports that Nikishin was frustrated with his role in Carolina, and I can understand that, to an extent. He went from being a nearly 30 minute a night player with SKA to playing 15 minutes a night in the NHL. And his results offensively were solid, but his defensive play was a huge concern and something the team will want him to work on. There’s also the fact that Carolina has Jaccob Slavin and K’Andre Miller on the left side, and both players aren’t going anywhere anytime soon. So, in this case, Nikishin is blocked.

It’s not unusual for a player to want a bigger role, especially one who had so much hype coming into the NHL. And I still think that Nikishin could be a very good NHL defenseman. But if there’s one thing the Hurricanes can stand to trade from, it’s left defensive depth. Charles Alexis Legault is never going to be better than Nikishin, but he may be better suited for a third pairing role. Nikishin could fetch the team a legitimate star forward or a star goaltender, which is something that the Hurricanes desperately need. Now, I’m not saying the Hurricanes should trade Nikishin. He has the potential to be excellent at this level. But if there were a time to trade him, it’s while his value is highest.

Nick and I will be live streaming on YouTube and the CanesProspects twitter account tonight for the draft, as well as tomorrow for rounds 2-7!