With the 2025-26 NHL season now concluded, the focus for the New York Rangers now turns to Buffalo, where the 2026 NHL Entry Draft will take place. Several mock drafts have come out in the past few weeks, and the latest sees the Rangers land two talents in the first round alone. D Carson Carels, from the WHL's Prince George Cougars, and Elton Hermansson, from Sweden's MoDo, land in Manhattan, according to the latest mocks.
Carels is a consensus top pick who'd address an area of need
Carels is a top-5 prospect on Elite Prospects and ranks highly in several other rankings for this year's draft, and it shows. A physical 17-year-old defenseman, Carels was a bronze medalist at this year's World Juniors for Team Canada in the US-hosted tournament. He could fit in quite nicely with the Rangers' top defensive lines, alongside Adam Fox (pending the Rangers actually hold on to him), and even if they don't, Vladislav Gavrikov is another talented young defenseman Carels could be paired with.
Carels had a stellar season for Prince George in the Western Hockey League this season, scoring 20 goals and notching 53 assists for 73 points, way more than you'd expect any defenseman nowadays to reach. It was his 3rd season with the Cougars and now the 17 year old from Cypress River Manitoba, is on his way to play college hockey for NCHC powerhouse North Dakota, becoming the latest talent to join one of college hockey's premier NHL factories. Carels is a physical two way defenseman whose goal scoring ability could instantly help the Rangers improve their offense on the defensive side of the puck.
Who is Elton Hermansson?
Moving on to the Rangers' second selection in Round 1, we look at MoDo winger Elton Hermansson, an 18 year old native of Ornskoldsvik, Sweden, playing for a second tier Swedish club this season but is still highly ranked on many prospect boards. He's in the top five according to the NHL's Central Scouting for European skaters, making him an ideal trade-up candidate for the Rangers, and this deal would be worked out with the Dallas Stars, who will give up their first-round selection for the selection of Hermansson.
The 18-year-old scored 11 goals and 10 assists for 21 points in 28 games for MoDo, and on the international stage for Team Sweden, he really shined, totaling 14 goals and 19 assists for 33 points in 18 games, including a gold medal for Sweden at the U18 Championships, which is a bit different from the World Junior Championships. Hermansson enters his 2nd season with MoDo's junior team after playing for Orebro, another Swedish club in prior seasons.
Another option for consideration
One final prospect the Rangers could also be looking to cash in on is Vancouver Giants forward Mathis Preston, another WHLer that could take the place of Hermansson's selection if the Rangers decide the 17-year-old Penticton, British Columbia native is a better choice. Preston does have similar rankings compared to Hermansson, so it wouldn't be a vastly different choice for President and GM Chris Drury.
Preston put up some modest numbers for the Spokane Giants last season (23 goals, 22 assists for 45 points in 54 games while adding 9 goals and 7 assists for 16 points in 20 playoff games) before heading back to his native BC. His numbers did take a dip with Spokane this season before he was dealt to the Giants (14 goals and 18 assists for 32 points in 36 games with the Chiefs, 4 goals and 8 assists for 12 points in 10 games with Vancouver), but he's still got the potential for the Rangers to take him late in Round 1 if they play their pieces right.
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