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MATT KROHN \/ THE ASSOCIATED PRESS<\/p>\n
Winnipeg Jets draft pick Viggo Bjorck (21) of Sweden controls the puck during the first period of an IIHF World Junior Hockey Championship gold medal game against Czechia on Jan. 5, in St. Paul, Minn.<\/p>\n
\u201cI have to be honest. He\u2019s one of the most exciting draft picks I\u2019ve ever had. I\u2019ve been doing this a long time,\u201d said Jets director of scouting Mark Hillier.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s the smartest player in the draft this year. He\u2019s one of the smartest players I\u2019ve scouted. I call him short but I don\u2019t call him small. He doesn\u2019t play small. He comes out of the corners with pucks. He uses a long stick. He\u2019s got good skill, he\u2019s a good skater, but his hockey sense is off the charts. He\u2019s just a kid that naturally knows positioning.\u201d<\/p>\n
Might he be ready to jump right into the NHL as early as this fall?<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s got a chance. So, now it\u2019s up to him,\u201d said Hillier.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe drafted him keeping an open mind that he\u2019s gonna be given an opportunity. I don\u2019t make those decisions at the end of the day, but he\u2019s one of those players who, the first time he steps on the ice he might not blow you away, but the more you watch him, you\u2019re gonna like him a little more each time.\u201d<\/p>\n
There will likely be a lot more patience required for the rest of the Class of 2026. But there\u2019s no question Winnipeg made some intriguing selections.<\/p>\n
G SAMUEL HRENAK (3rd round, 71st-overall)<\/p>\n
The 6-3 Slovakian caught the eye of scouts after coming to North America and dominating in the USHL with the Fargo Force.<\/p>\n
Elite Prospects described him as \u201cabsolute dog \u2014 something he no doubt learned he needed to be to survive against pro competition in Slovakia. He pairs that engine with quick feet, which allow him to reach the play with his feet, even if he\u2019s late to a read.\u201d<\/p>\n
Hrenak, 18, played nine games with Fargo, going 7-1-1 with a 2.20 goals against average and a .918 save percentage, while also starring for his home country at the U18s.<\/p>\n
Funny enough, he woke up Saturday morning with the feeling the Jets might be calling his name.<\/p>\n
\u201cI couldn\u2019t think of wearing any other jersey than the Winnipeg Jets. I\u2019m not saying that because it sounds good, but that\u2019s kind of the truth,\u201d Hrenak said in a Zoom interview from the site of the draft in Buffalo.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m excited and I\u2019m so grateful that I can be part of this amazing organization. When I came to Fargo and I heard that the Winnipeg Jets are just three hours (away), I was hoping that it could be reality and I could be wearing Winnipeg Jets colours. It\u2019s awesome. It\u2019s an honour and I don\u2019t have any words right now.\u201d<\/p>\n
Jets director of scouting Mark Hillier said Manitoba Moose goalie coach Drew MacIntyre was big on Hrenak and lobbied for the organization to grab him.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m excited to show this organization what\u2019s in me and I want to make them right, that they made the right choice,\u201d said Hrenak.<\/p>\n
C ZACH WOOTEN (4th round, 116th-overall)<\/p>\n
Third time was the charm for the Minnesota product, who was passed over during his draft eligibility in 2024 and 2025. But the 6-2, 205 pound forward turned plenty of heads this past season as he dominated the USHL, with 62 points (35G, 27A) in 61 games with the Green Bay Gamblers which earned him All Star honours.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was surreal. I was kind of shaking when I got the call from my agent a couple seconds prior and he asked me if I was watching the screen. I was like \u2018Yup.\u2019 And then I saw the selection,\u201d Wooten said of getting drafted by the Jets.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was with probably 20 other people in our house. There was a loud roar. Just super excited and pumped to get going.\u201d<\/p>\n
Elite Prospects describes Wooten as having \u201ca motor that never stops; he overwhelms opponents with a breakneck pace and intensity, forcing turnovers in all three zones. When his unrelenting pressure inevitably creates opportunities for his team, he can generate offence, too.\u201d<\/p>\n
Wooten, 20, said he tries to model his game after young Toronto power forward Matthew Knies.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think I\u2019m a hard, skilled, physical winger. I like to use my skating and my shot to my advantage. And I kind of pride myself on winning battles and being tough around the net and in the corners, too \u2014 especially on the forecheck,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cEveryone kind of develops during their own timeline. For me, during my first year of draft eligibility to now, I\u2019ve grown two to three inches and gained 30, 40 pounds. Those first two years, I wasn\u2019t really looked at as an NHL prospect. I wasn\u2019t too happy about that. I knew I had more. I wanted to come into this past season looking for more.\u201d<\/p>\n
Wooten is headed to the University of Wisconsin this fall.<\/p>\n
D ALEXANDRE TAILLEFER (5th round, 135th-overall)<\/p>\n
The 18-year-old from Quebec has become a big fan of Jets defenceman Josh Morrissey in recent years. Now, they are part of the same organization, celebrating with plenty of family and friends inside KeyBank Center in Buffalo.<\/p>\n
\u201cI look up to him a lot, and watch him play a lot,\u201d said Taillefer.<\/p>\n
The left-shot defender, who stands 6-0 and weights 164 pounds, was limited to just 28 games this past year with the Quebec Remparts after suffering an Achilles injury. He put up 17 points (2G, 15A) and believes the best is yet to come.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think I\u2019m a two-way defenceman. I\u2019m a dynamic player,\u201d said Taillefer. \u201cI like to make the first pass. I like to make plays and stuff and I love to be a physical too. So yeah, I\u2019d say, I\u2019m like a (Miro) Heiskanen type of player.\u201d<\/p>\n
He\u2019s committed to play one more year with the Remparts, then head to the University of Massachusetts in the NCAA.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe feel he\u2019s one of the best skating defencemen in the draft. Skating, puck mover, plays in a very good program there in Quebec,\u201d said Hillier.<\/p>\n
C LANDON HAFELE (6th round, 167th-overall)<\/p>\n
He\u2019ll need no introduction to fellow Class of 2026 member Wooten \u2014 the pair were teammates last year with Green Bay.<\/p>\n
The Alaska native had a solid sophomore season in the USHL with 42 points (15G, 27A) in 52 games. Elite Prospects had this to say: \u201cPace is Hafele\u2019s game. His feet never stop moving, using tons of rapid crossovers to close gaps and drive play forward. He finishes hits and disrupts breakouts with his speed.\u201d<\/p>\n
Hafele, 18, is headed to Arizona State this fall to continue his development.<\/p>\n
D ALOFA TUNOA (NOA) TA\u2019AMU (7th round, 199th-overall)<\/p>\n
Some history was made in this pick.<\/p>\n
Ta\u2019amu becomes the first ever player of Samoan descent to be drafted in the NHL.<\/p>\n
His father, who is from Hawaii, was an offensive lineman drafted by the Minnesota Vikings in 2002. A serious knee injury hampered his football career, which was limited to the Arena Football League. His mother is Canadian, and the family moved to Edmonton when Noa was a young boy, having been born in the U.S.<\/p>\n
Ta\u2019amu, who is 6-2 and 227 pounds, played last season with the Edmonton Oil Kings of the Western Hockey League. The left-shot defender had 12 points (3G, 9A) in 62 games along with 81 penalty minutes.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s got good feet. He moves well for a big guy,\u201d said Hillier. \u201cChipped in a little offensively there but kind of plays an old school, hard-nosed game. Not afraid to drop the gloves in a scrap. We liked his old school approach, stay at home D, and he plays hard.\u201d<\/p>\n
G JOHN PARSONS (7th round, 220th-overall)<\/p>\n
Sure, the Jets have Connor Hellebuyck \u2014 at least for now. But the depth chart really thins out once you get past current Manitoba Moose goaltenders Thomas Milic and Dom DiVincentiis.<\/p>\n
\n\t\tWinnipeg Free Press | Newsletter\n\t<\/p>\n
\t\t\tThe Warm-Up<\/p>\n
Winnipeg Jets Game Days<\/p>\n
On Winnipeg Jets game days, hockey writers Mike McIntyre and Ken Wiebe send news, notes and quotes from the morning skate, as well as injury updates and lineup decisions. Arrives a few hours prior to puck drop.<\/p>\n
\t\t\tSign up for The Warm-Up<\/a><\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t And so the organization grabbed a second goaltender from this class in Parsons, a 20-year-old from New York who had a terrific rookie season with Providence College.<\/p>\n The 6-3 puckstopper went 13-5-0 with a 2.05 GAA and .922 SV%.<\/p>\n \u201cWe really liked his progress throughout the year,\u201d said Hillier. \u201cSo we thought it was great depth in the seventh round to add a second goalie. We just thought he was the best player available, better than any skater.\u201d<\/p>\n Fans will be able to get their first look at the fresh new faces when Jets development camp begins Tuesday at the Hockey For All Centre with daily on-ice sessions open to the public at no charge at 9:30 a.m.<\/p>\n www.winnipegfreepress.com\/mikemcintyre<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t Mike McIntyre Mike McIntyre is a sports reporter whose primary role is covering the Winnipeg Jets. After graduating from the Creative Communications program at Red River College in 1995, he spent two years gaining experience at the Winnipeg Sun before joining the Free Press in 1997, where he served on the crime and justice beat until 2016. Read more about Mike<\/a>.<\/p>\n Every piece of reporting Mike produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print \u2014 part of the Free Press\u2018s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press\u2019s history and mandate<\/a>, and learn how our newsroom operates<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Reporter
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