{"id":554892,"date":"2026-04-18T00:09:26","date_gmt":"2026-04-18T00:09:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/554892\/"},"modified":"2026-04-18T00:09:26","modified_gmt":"2026-04-18T00:09:26","slug":"columbus-blue-jackets-nhl-draft-outlook-what-to-know-in-2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/554892\/","title":{"rendered":"Columbus Blue Jackets NHL Draft Outlook: What To Know In 2026"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Columbus Blue Jackets<\/a> (40-30-12) enter the 2026 NHL Draft\u00a0<\/a>cycle positioned just outside the playoff field, placing them firmly in the lottery.<\/p>\n

The NHL Draft Lottery is May 5 during the NHL Playoffs, giving Columbus a chance to improve its position near the top of the draft board. While the Blue Jackets are not among the teams with the highest odds, they remain within striking distance of a significant jump.<\/p>\n

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The Blue Jackets finished fifth in the Metropolitan Division.<\/p>\n

Columbus is coming off a 2025 NHL Draft class that included two first-round selections. The Blue Jackets selected defenseman Jackson Smith and goaltender Pyotr Andreyanov in the opening round, adding high-end talent at multiple positions. That class continued through later rounds, reinforcing the organization\u2019s depth and long-term development pipeline.<\/p>\n

Looking ahead, the Blue Jackets\u2019 2026 draft outlook remains relatively stable, with their first-round position to be determined by the lottery. With a strong recent draft class already in place, Columbus will look to build on that foundation depending on where it ultimately selects.<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s everything we know about the Columbus Blue Jackets\u2019 NHL Draft outlook.<\/p>\n

Columbus Blue Jackets NHL Draft Picks In 2026<\/p>\n

The NHL Draft spans seven rounds, and each team typically holds one selection per round unless trades alter that structure.<\/p>\n

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Columbus traded its second-round pick to the Los Angeles Kings<\/a> in a deal involving Phillip Danault<\/a> and its third-round pick to the Vancouver Canucks<\/a> in a trade involving Conor Garland<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Columbus Blue Jackets NHL Draft Lottery Odds For No. 1 Pick<\/p>\n

The Columbus Blue Jackets have a 3.2% chance to secure the No. 1 overall pick. Their most likely outcome is remaining near the No. 14 position, with an average draft position of 13.7.<\/p>\n

Who Did The Columbus Blue Jackets Draft In 2025?<\/p>\n

Jackson Smith, D, Tri-City Americans<\/p>\n

Pyotr Andreyanov, G, CSKA Red Army Jr.<\/p>\n

Malte Vass, D, Farjestads Jr.<\/p>\n

Owen Griffin, C, Oshawa Generals<\/p>\n

Victor Raftheim-Hedin, D, Brynas Jr.<\/p>\n

Jeremy Loranger, C, Sherwood Park Crusaders<\/p>\n

Has A Columbus Blue Jackets Player Ever Won The NHL Calder Memorial Trophy?<\/p>\n

The NHL Calder Memorial Trophy is the NHL\u2019s rookie of the year award. Here are all the Columbus Blue Jackets players who have won the award.<\/p>\n

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Who Are The Columbus Blue Jackets Minor League Hockey Team Affiliates?<\/p>\n

The Columbus Blue Jackets are affiliated with the Cleveland Monsters in the American Hockey League and do not have an ECHL affiliate listed.<\/p>\n

When Is The NHL Draft?<\/p>\n

The NHL Draft will take place on June 26- 27 in Buffalo, New York at KeyBank Center. It\u2019s the 64th NHL Draft.<\/p>\n

2025-2026 NHL Final StandingsEastern Conference<\/p>\n

Atlantic Division<\/p>\n

Toronto<\/a> Maple Leafs \u2014 32-36-14, 78 pts (eliminated)<\/p>\n

Metropolitan Division<\/p>\n

Columbus Blue Jackets \u2014 40-30-12, 92 pts (eliminated)<\/p>\n

Western Conference<\/p>\n

Central Division<\/p>\n

Pacific Division<\/p>\n

Los Angeles Kings \u2014 35-27-20, 90 pts (playoffs)<\/p>\n

Vancouver Canucks \u2014 25-49-8, 58 pts (eliminated)<\/p>\n

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FloHockey is the streaming home to some of the best hockey leagues in North America, including the ECHL and more. Check out the broadcast schedule to watch more hockey.<\/a><\/p>\n

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Join The Hockey Conversation On FloHockey Social<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Columbus Blue Jackets (40-30-12) enter the 2026 NHL Draft\u00a0cycle positioned just outside the playoff field, placing them…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":554893,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5108],"tags":[233,3644,5180,95,229,26,29,96,144,897,230,5179,1613,147,93,146,57,5,471,145,38,21,231,151,159,35,4,465,60,25,56,1808,100,168,234,84,92,66,3154,27,39,109,18],"class_list":{"0":"post-554892","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-columbus-blue-jackets","8":"tag-anaheim-ducks","9":"tag-blue-jackets","10":"tag-bluejackets","11":"tag-boston-bruins","12":"tag-buffalo-sabres","13":"tag-calgary-flames","14":"tag-carolina-hurricanes","15":"tag-chicago-blackhawks","16":"tag-colorado-avalanche","17":"tag-columbus","18":"tag-columbus-blue-jackets","19":"tag-columbusbluejackets","20":"tag-conor-garland","21":"tag-dallas-stars","22":"tag-detroit-red-wings","23":"tag-edmonton-oilers","24":"tag-florida-panthers","25":"tag-hockey","26":"tag-jackson-smith","27":"tag-los-angeles-kings","28":"tag-minnesota-wild","29":"tag-montreal-canadiens","30":"tag-nashville-predators","31":"tag-new-jersey-devils","32":"tag-new-york-islanders","33":"tag-new-york-rangers","34":"tag-nhl","35":"tag-nhl-draft","36":"tag-nhl-playoffs","37":"tag-ottawa-senators","38":"tag-philadelphia-flyers","39":"tag-phillip-danault","40":"tag-pittsburgh-penguins","41":"tag-san-jose-sharks","42":"tag-seattle-kraken","43":"tag-st-louis-blues","44":"tag-tampa-bay-lightning","45":"tag-toronto","46":"tag-utah-mammoth","47":"tag-vancouver-canucks","48":"tag-vegas-golden-knights","49":"tag-washington-capitals","50":"tag-winnipeg-jets"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"","error":"Validation failed: Text character limit of 500 exceeded"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/554892","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=554892"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/554892\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/554893"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=554892"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=554892"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=554892"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}