Blue Jackets to Pick 14th Overall at 2026 NHL Entry Draft – The Hockey Writers –

The Columbus Blue Jackets went into Tuesday night’s NHL Draft Lottery with a very slight chance to be able to move up in the draft order. As expected, the ping pong balls did not bounce their way.

With the Toronto Maple Leafs winning the first-overall pick and the San Jose Sharks winning the second-overall pick, the Blue Jackets will officially pick 14th at the NHL Entry Draft in Buffalo. It marked the second consecutive season that the team will pick 14th overall. In 2025, they selected defenseman Jackson Smith.

The Blue Jackets entered the lottery with a 1.5% chance of being able to move up 10 spots. They have yet to win a lottery in franchise history that gave them a chance to move up to pick first or second overall.

Now What?

The big question now for the Blue Jackets will be how do they handle things knowing where they will pick. Recall last season that GM Don Waddell went on record and said that he was willing to part with their first-round pick. Nothing ever materialized.

That allowed the Blue Jackets to pick Smith. He played his freshman season at Penn State and is expected to return to school to play his sophomore season with the Nittany Lions. It appears he is a couple of seasons away from seeing NHL time.

While the Blue Jackets will be ready to make a pick if it comes to that, one has to suspect the team will take the same approach as last season. For the right player and situation, Waddell would be willing to part with the 14th overall pick this year.

There’s just one potential issue with that. Depending on what you believe about this year’s group of prospects, the very top of the list doesn’t extend down to the 14th pick. That would imply teams above the Blue Jackets would also be willing to part with their first-round pick in the right situation.

Waddell and staff find themselves in a tricky situation. They know they want to add to their team. But with a thin crop of UFAs available in free agency, trade appears to be the more logical route to acquire a higher impact player.

One thing to watch around the 14th pick. If a certain prospect starts to fall and teams see an opportunity to trade up, that could be one area the Blue Jackets could take advantage of in order to get a now player.

The Blue Jackets have their sights set on trying to make the playoffs in 2026-27. They brought in head coach Rick Bowness for another season to help get the culture to a better place. They will certainly make the pick if needed. But knowing that player is potentially years away from helping the team now, there’s a good chance they will look to make an impact trade. The 14th overall pick could be a good piece in any potential trade.

The 2026 Upper Deck NHL Draft will take place in Buffalo on Friday, June 26 and Saturday, June 27. The Blue Jackets hold a total of seven picks at the draft including one in each round.