Throughout the week, The Athletic outlined the main prospects the New York Rangers could target in the 2026 NHL Draft, with a focus on defensemen who will be in the best-player-available conversation with the No. 5 pick: Carson Carels, Alberts Šmits, Chase Reid and Keaton Verhoeff. To end the series, we’ll dig into some wild cards: players with a lower, but non-zero, chance of getting selected by New York.

What’s available to the Rangers on June 26 in Buffalo, N.Y., will be dictated by what happens with the four picks in front of them. Penn State winger Gavin McKenna is the presumed No. 1 pick, which would land him in Toronto, while an Eastern Conference scout, speaking on the condition of anonymity to freely opine on the draft, said that “all (signs) point to Vancouver going with (center Caleb) Malhotra” at No. 3. Those opinions are largely shared throughout the industry.

There’s more uncertainty surrounding the San Jose Sharks at No. 2 and the Chicago Blackhawks at No. 4. League sources have indicated that both teams are willing to listen to offers for their picks, but recent history tells us a trade is unlikely. A top-two pick has been traded only five times since the NHL introduced the draft lottery in 1995, with no such deals occurring since 2003, according to NHL Stats.

The Sharks are seeking plug-and-play defensemen to bolster a blue line that only has three players with NHL experience under contract for next season. They acquired one on Wednesday in a deal that brought Michael Kesselring from the Buffalo Sabres, which may decrease the urgency to trade back.

Who can the Rangers draft at No. 5?

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Is that enough to tempt San Jose general manager Mike Grier to add to his riches of forwards by selecting Malhotra or Swedish winger Ivar Stenberg? The Sharks are considered one of the hardest teams to read in the pre-draft process, but most believe they’ll still lean defense at No. 2.

“They need a right-shot D to play with (lefty Sam) Dickinson, so that could point to Reid,” the Eastern Conference scout said.

That could be an ideal scenario for the Blackhawks, who are believed to be eyeing Stenberg at No. 4. But if the Sharks or Vancouver Canucks snatch him up, Reid is likely the defenseman they’d take at No. 4, according to The Athletic’s Chicago hockey writer Scott Powers.

While the order of the top four picks is a major point of curiosity, deductive reasoning tells us that, one way or another, McKenna, Reid, Malhotra and Stenberg figure to all be gone by the time the Rangers go on the clock at No. 5. In that scenario, our reporting suggests that Šmits may be a slight front-runner for New York, with Carels also firmly in the mix. Verhoeff has slipped a bit in the eyes of some scouts due to skating and defensive concerns, but he was once billed as the top defenseman in the class and can’t be ruled out, either.

What other longer shot permutations could be in play for New York? Let’s run through what we’re hearing:

Caleb Malhotra coveted but unlikely to fall

If Malhotra were to somehow make it to No. 5, he’d be the clear favorite for the Rangers, who we’ve heard are high on the Boston University commit.

It would make plenty of sense. New York hasn’t selected a first-round center since 2017, which explains why the position stands as the most glaring need in the team’s prospect pool. And in the eyes of many clubs, Malhotra has emerged as the top player at that critical position in this draft.

“That kid’s going to be a hockey player one way or the other,” said a Western Conference scout, also speaking on the condition of anonymity. “Is he going to be a first-line center? Is he going to be a second-line center? I’m not positive, but I just feel like there’s a ton of ceiling there because he’s got so much room to grow into.”

The 6-foot-2, 185-pounder has shot up draft boards after notching 84 points (29 goals and 55 assists) in 67 games for OHL Brantford, then erupting for another 26 (13 goals and 13 assists) in 15 playoff games. His offensive upside has been debated, but many scouts believe there’s enough there to justify a top-five pick. And they rave about the intangibles of a defensively responsible center who brings an NHL background. His father, Manny — who was recently named coach of the Canucks — played 991 NHL games and was drafted by the Rangers at No. 7 in 1998.

“I try to bring a 200-foot, reliable game,” the younger Malhotra told The Athletic at the NHL Combine. “I try to be very dynamic offensively. I’m more of a playmaker, so kind of creating space for my teammates and finding them in scoring areas. Defensively, I’m a checker and someone who’s able to be physical and shut down top guys and be very aggressive.”

The Eastern Conference scout compared Malholtra to New Jersey Devils captain Nico Hischier, the No. 1 pick in the 2017 draft, and sees him as a possible future captain for his strong character and attention to detail.

“Even if he’s a 70-point guy, the way he plays, he plays the game that wins Cups,” the scout said.

Viggo Björck is a dark horse

While Malhotra likely won’t be available to the Rangers — unless they find a way to trade up, which is viewed as a very slim possibility due to their lack of premium assets — the consensus No. 2 center in the draft should be.

Viggo Björck, a 5-foot-9 Swede who plays bigger than his diminutive stature, has been on the rise after collecting six points (one goal and five assists) in eight appearances at last month’s IIHF World Championships. He held his own against established NHLers and became one of the most discussed names at the NHL Draft Combine in Buffalo earlier this month.

“With what he did at the World Championships, other than being (5-foot-9), no problem at all,” the Western Conference scout said. “And he’s built like a fire hydrant.”

Björck makes up for his lack of height with competitive spirit and savvy playmaking. Colleague Scott Wheeler described him as “slippery, clever (and) crafty.”

He made the full-time jump to the SHL, Sweden’s top men’s pro league, at age 17 and got better as the season went on. He finished playing a top-line role for Djurgårdens IF while notching a respectable 15 points (six goals and nine assists) in 42 games. He also played on both special teams and excelled in the faceoff circle.

Björck seems likely to go in the top 10 and has forced his way into the conversation as high as No. 5. We’ve heard the Rangers are intrigued and wouldn’t be stunned if they decide to take a swing, but snagging a potential top-pair defenseman feels like the safer bet and likelier outcome. The Eastern Conference scout wondered if Björck will be able to stick at center or if his size will force a move to wing at some point, which is another factor that could cause New York to hesitate.

The NHL award some players don’t want

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Other draft notesCould Stenberg drop?

It would be a surprise if Stenberg falls to No. 5, but the most viable scenario would involve both the Sharks and Blackhawks taking defensemen. If that happens, Stenberg — the top European skater, per NHL Central Scouting — would have to garner serious consideration.

The Eastern Conference scout agreed it’s a long shot but thinks there’s a slightly better chance of Stenberg making it to the Rangers than Malhotra because he’s smaller (5-11, 183 pounds) and plays a less valuable position.

Stenberg had 33 points (11 goals and 22 assists) in 43 games for Frölunda HC in the SHL this past season, then was a point-per-game player (four goals and four assists) in eight world championship games with Sweden. He and McKenna are projected as the likeliest prospects in the draft to become top-line players in the NHL.

Daxon Rudolph’s offensive upside

Carels, Reid, Šmits and Verhoeff are generally viewed as the top-four defensemen in the class, but some scouts lump Daxon Rudolph into the same tier. Like Carels and Verhoeff, Rudolph is from Western Canada and put up big numbers in the WHL. He led all WHL defensemen with 78 points (28 goals and 50 assists) in 68 games for the Prince Albert Raiders this past season, then added 27 more in 19 playoff games.

“Out of all those guys, he’s the offensive (defenseman),” the Western Conference scout said. “He’s high-end offense, can run a power play. … He’s big and he can skate, he’s right-handed. I think there’s a lot of teams that like this kid.”

The 6-2, 206-pounder described his IQ as the biggest strength of his game while noting he wants to improve his first three strides. He’s committed to play for defending national champion University of Denver, with the Eastern Conference scout saying he wouldn’t rule out Rudolph going before Verhoeff.

As is the case with many of these prospects, Rudolph has had multiple conversations with the Rangers.

Etc.

• Boston University forward Tynan Lawrence seems to have faded from top-five consideration. He’s the third-rated center on most boards behind Malhotra and Björck and expected to be selected in the 8-15 range.

“There’s going to be some questions about the offensive pop with him,” the Western Conference scout said. “He’s not a huge point-scorer or anything like that.”

• Expect five or six defensemen to go in the first 10 picks, with Swedish lefty Malte Gustafsson also in the mix. One forward who’s not seen as an option for the Rangers but could crash the top-10 party is U.S. National Team Development Program product Wyatt Cullen.

• Our sense is that New York is open to trading its second first-rounder at No. 26 if a deal comes along that expedites its roster retool, but there’s uncertainty regarding the value of the pick. The draft is considered somewhat of a crapshoot after the first 13 or so prospects, with wide-ranging opinions on who will go where in the latter half of the first round and early portion of the second. That could make it difficult to flip the 26th pick for anything substantial enough to merit a trade.

If the Rangers take a defenseman at No. 5 and hold No. 26, there should be an interesting array of forwards available. They could look to snag a center, with Ryder Cali, Maddox Dagenais, Jack Hextall, Ilia Morozov and Brooks Rogowski all possibilities to land in that range, or address their need for skill and speed by targeting scoring wingers such as Elton Hermansson, JP Hurlbert, Nikita Klepov, Adam Novotny, Mathis Preston and Liam Ruck.

Some of them won’t make it to No. 26, but at least a few should, providing New York with options. Hextall, Rogowski and Klepov are names to monitor, in particular. The pool of defensemen in that range is decidedly shallower.