After taking Alberts Smits fifth-overall on day 1 of the 2026 NHL Draft, the New York Rangers added eight picks to their prospect pipeline on day 2.
Rangers general manager Chris Drury made three trades on draft day; he moved bottom-six forward Adam Edstrom to the Nashville Predators for forward Massimo Rizzo and a fifth-round pick (148th overall). He traded the 26th and 92nd overall picks and a top-10 protected first round pick in 2028 for sharpshooting wing Pavel Dorofeyev. And lastly, he moved fringe NHL forward Brett Berard to the Montreal Canadiens for American Hockey League (AHL) defenseman William Trudeau.
The Blueshirts’ focus in this draft was on picking left-handed defensemen, centers and goalies. Let’s take a look at the players whom the Rangers drafted in 2026.
Second round, #64: Benjamin MacBeath, D
This left-handed defenseman is coming off a productive rookie season with his hometown Calgary Hitmen in the Western Hockey League (WHL). He possesses good height at 6-foot-2 and shoots the puck well, which are two things that the Rangers can use on their blueline. MacBeath put up 7 goals and 44 assists for the Hitmen last season and he is also a two-way player as his +5 last season suggests. He is committed to the University of Denver for the upcoming season, where he will look to improve his game and make himself more ready to play in the NHL.
Third round, #67: Danai Shaiikov, G
With Dylan Garand likely becoming Igor Shesterkin’s back-up next season, the Rangers decided to add a goaltender to their prospect pipeline. Shaiikov had a breakout season last year in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL), where he put up a .903 Save percentage and a 2.78 goals-against average, which were both 10th-best in the league. Eliteprospects.com says that Shaiikov’s main attributes are his quickness, flexibility and ability to read plays. At 6-foot-2, Shaiikov has the right amount of size to play goalie in the NHL and with the right coaching, Shaiikov has the tools to develop into a solid NHL goaltender.
Third Round, #77: Charlie Morrison, D
With the first of their two third-round picks, the Blueshirts selected this left-handed defenseman who played for the Quebec Remparts in the QMJHL last season. Morrison is 6-foot-3 and 198 pounds. Although he scored just 13 points in 41 games, he also missed 20 games due to injury last season. According to McKeen’s Hockey, Morrison is a smooth skater who plays a “simple game, putting pucks to the right place at the right time.” He needs to work on his shooting and intensity, but the hockey IQ and size is there for him to develop into a solid NHL defenseman.
Third Round, #81: Tomas Chrenko, C
The Rangers needed centers after the Edstrom trade left them with only three on the NHL roster and that’s why the Ranger picked Chrenko. Chrenko is only 18 years old so don’t expect him to play for the Rangers next season but, he has a lot of skill, as evidenced by the 31 points he scored in Slovakia’s top pro league last season. Elite prospects says he is “a quick skater and puck handler”, two things that are always in high demand. The question surrounding Chrenko is can he deal with the physicality of the AHL and prove his worth there.
Fourth round, #102: Spencer Bowes, C
The Rangers traded a fifth and sixth-round pick to the Seattle Kraken for a fourth-round pick which they used to draft Bowes. The 75th North American skater according to NHL.com’s prospect rankings is coming off a season in the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) where he scored 42 points in 67 games. Bowes has good offensive instincts and great scoring touch. He can score in a variety of ways. He is turning 19 in September and will play for his hometown Ottawa 67s next season.
Sixth Round, #162: Andre Mondoux, D
Early in the sixth round, the Blueshirts drafted Mondoux, a 6-foot-4 defenseman who scored 18 points for the Kingston Frontenacs of the OHL last season. This may be a modest point total but the rangy defenseman showed that he’s reliable defensively by posting a +19 plus/minus in his second season in the OHL. His eliteprospects.com draft profile says that Mondoux is a “hard-hitting, battling defenseman” who “understands how to use his size to his advantage”, which reminds me of Marc Staal. The Rangers needed size in their system and because of that, this pick seems like a solid one.
Sixth Round, #163: Darian Anderson, RW
Right after they picked Mondoux, the Ranger selected another player with good size (6-foot-3) and their first American. The 19-year-old from Michigan scored 20 goals for the Flint Firebirds in his first OHL season last year, which showed he can put the puck in the net. In addition, Anderson isn’t afraid to drop the gloves; he fought Ranger prospect Liam Greentree last season and held his own. You can always use an edge when trying to make it in the NHL and Anderson has that, but in order to make it to the NHL, he must transfer the production he had in the OHL to the American Hockey League (AHL).
Seventh Round, #193: Ivan Patrikhayev, D
The Rangers selected 20-year-old Russian defenseman Ivan Patrikhayev with the first pick of the draft’s final round. He is a mobile defenseman who doesn’t have great size at (6-foot, 185 pounds) but makes up for it with his skating. Elite Prospects describers Patrikhayev as “Fluid, agile, speedy, Patrikhayev catches pucks in motion, escapes forecheckers, draws in additional pressure, and passes to open teammates.” Patrikhayev scored 13 points in 66 games in the KHL for CSKA Moskva in 2025-26 and will play there next season as well.
Drafting Four Left-Handed Defensemen?
The Rangers added some quality talent to their prospect group, but they should have taken some right-handed defensemen, instead of taking all left-handed defensemen. As of now, they only have one right-handed defensemen, who happens to be Adam Fox.
Shaiikov looks like he will be a good NHL goalie one day and may even take over as number one when Shesterkin’s prime ends. However, with the retirement of Benoit Allaire, the Rangers goaltending coach of 22 years, do they have the coaches to develop Shaiikov into an NHL starter?
The Rangers failed to develop former high first-round picks Lias Andersson and Vitali Kravstov, who are both out of the NHL. Have the Rangers learned their lessons?
