Corey Pronman details what to expect from the Winnipeg Jets\u2019 new prospects and how they fit into the farm system.<\/p>\n
2026 Draft Grade: C<\/p>\n
Winnipeg targeted a highly cerebral player in Viggo Bj\u00f6rck at 8. He\u2019s won scouts over with his mature, high-IQ game down the middle. He\u2019s undersized, but his brain and compete are so elite that I think he can be a top-six center.<\/p>\n
Viggo Bjorck goes to the Winnipeg Jets at No. 8<\/p>\n
The Athletic Hockey Show<\/p>\n
Draft Class<\/p>\n
8. Viggo Bj\u00f6rck, C, Djurg\u00e5rdens IF (SHL)<\/p>\n
March 12, 2008 | 5\u2032 9\u2033 | 181 pounds<\/p>\n
Tier: Bubble top and middle of the lineup player<\/p>\n
Skating: Above NHL average
Puck skills: Above NHL average
Hockey sense: Above NHL average
Compete: High-end
Shot: Above NHL average<\/p>\n
Player comparable: Logan Stankoven<\/p>\n
Analysis: Bj\u00f6rck is a slick, playmaking center. He has tremendous creativity as both a puck handler and passer. He\u2019s small and a good, but not great, skater, which raises some concerns about his NHL projection, particularly if he can stay in the middle. Bj\u00f6rck is talented, but it\u2019s his great compete and off-puck details that get evaluators excited. He wins a ton of battles, even versus men as a 17-year-old, is great defensively and is often trusted by coaches in all situations. He projects as a quality top-two-line center in the NHL.<\/p>\n
Thoughts on the pick: I think there are some concerns his feet aren\u2019t elite. I don\u2019t think his skating is elite for his size. At the World Juniors, though, I thought he was better than Ivar Stenberg. At the World Championships, I thought he was just as good, if not better than Stenberg. I don\u2019t think it would surprise anyone if three years from now, we\u2019re talking about Bj\u00f6rck as one of the best forwards in the draft.<\/p>\n
71. Samuel Hrenak, G, Fargo Force (USHL)<\/p>\n
March 19, 2008 | 6\u2032 3\u2033 | 190 pounds<\/p>\n
Tier: NHL prospect<\/p>\n
Analysis: Hrenak bounced around this season between a few clubs and Europe and ended his season in the USHL. He\u2019s a smart goalie who positions himself well and takes away angles well. I don\u2019t think he has the quick twitch in his lower half you\u2019d ideally like for higher levels, though.<\/p>\n
116. Zach Wooten, C, Green Bay Gamblers (USHL)<\/p>\n
February 21, 2006 | 6\u2032 2\u2033 | 205 pounds<\/p>\n
135. Alexandre Taillefer, LHD, Qu\u00e9bec Remparts (QMJHL)<\/p>\n
January 1, 2008 | 6\u2032 0\u2033 | 165 pounds<\/p>\n
167. Landon Hafele, F, Green Bay Gamblers (USHL)<\/p>\n
September 18, 2007 | 6\u2032 0\u2033 | 179 pounds<\/p>\n
Tier: NHL prospect<\/p>\n
Skating: NHL average
Puck skills: NHL average
Hockey sense: NHL average
Compete: Above NHL average<\/p>\n
Analysis: Hafele is a winger full of energy. He\u2019s a quick skater who plays fast. He\u2019s very physical and competes at a high level. Hafele scored at a decent clip in the USHL this season, although scoring and creativity don\u2019t project as his strong suit at higher levels. If he makes it, it\u2019s likely as a fourth-line winger who\u2019s hard to play against.<\/p>\n
199. Noa Ta\u2019amu, LHD, Edmonton Oil Kings (WHL)<\/p>\n
May 28, 2008 | 6\u2032 2\u2033 | 227 pounds<\/p>\n
220. John Parsons, G, Providence College (NCAA)<\/p>\n
January 15, 2006 | 6\u2032 3\u2033 | 194 pounds<\/p>\n
Beat writer analysis<\/p>\n
Winnipeg is a winner at the 2026 draft by virtue of Viggo Bj\u00f6rck\u2019s availability at No. 8.<\/p>\n
The Jets\u2019 next-highest pick was No. 71, making the Bj\u00f6rck selection Winnipeg\u2019s runaway highlight at a draft that also included Connor Hellebuyck trade negotiations that didn\u2019t result in a trade. These considerations may be intertwined: The Jets are so high on Bj\u00f6rck\u2019s ability coming off an excellent World Championships that they feel he could make the team at training camp, while the absence of centre help by way of a Hellebuyck trade could open up a spot.<\/p>\n
Jets director of amateur scouting Mark Hillier was effusive in his post-draft praise for Bj\u00f6rck.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s one of the most exciting draft picks I\u2019ve ever had. I think he\u2019s the smartest player in the draft this year. He\u2019s one of the smartest players I\u2019ve scouted,\u201d Hillier said. \u201cThe more you watch him, you\u2019re going to like him a little more each time. You\u2019re going to see those little hockey sense and instinct things that coaches love. At the World Championships at the end of the year, he didn\u2019t just make (Sweden\u2019s) team. He was arguably their best player.\u201d<\/p>\n
Bj\u00f6rck is under contract at Djurg\u00e5rdens IF for one more season, where fellow top prospects like Anton Frondell and Viktor Eklund played in their post-draft seasons, but Hillier said he believes in Bj\u00f6rck\u2019s Jets potential.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s got a chance. We drafted him keeping an open mind that he\u2019s gonna be given an opportunity (at training camp). I just think if he signs, he\u2019s going to make it real hard not to play him,\u201d Hillier said.<\/p>\n
The rest of Winnipeg\u2019s draft picks convey organizational priorities. Green Bay Gamblers teammates Zach Wooten and Landon Hafele are also known for their \u201cdog on a bone\u201d mentality. The Jets are trying to prioritize competitiveness in all areas of the game: speed, hockey IQ and the kind of work ethic that helps players improve over the long run. Bj\u00f6rck is the most highly touted and is known for being the first player on the ice and the last one off it, but the Jets tried to prioritize that characteristic in all of their picks.<\/p>\n
They also took two goalies for the first time in franchise history, including Samuel Hrenak of the Fargo Force at No. 71 \u2014 the second-highest pick Winnipeg has ever used on a goaltender. It may look like Hellebuyck insurance at first glance, but the reality is that Winnipeg needs future coverage in goal. Dom DiVincentiis and Thomas Milic will share netminding duties in Manitoba again this season but the Jets didn\u2019t have a next wave of goaltending prospects behind them. Hrenak, who was spectacular for Slovakia at the U18 World Championships, will play for Fargo in the USHL this season, while late-blooming goalie John Parsons, drafted 220th, will return to Providence College. Winnipeg has time to wait on them in a way it can\u2019t wait to resolve the Hellebuyck situation in the NHL.<\/p>\n
If any of the players Winnipeg took at No. 71 or later make the NHL, it will be a victory that harkens back to the Jets\u2019 glory days of drafting and development from 2011-2015. Bj\u00f6rck alone should make the Jets\u2019 2026 draft a win and help Jets fans move past the miserable season that led to the pick. \u2014 Murat Ates<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Corey Pronman details what to expect from the Winnipeg Jets\u2019 new prospects and how they fit into the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":766579,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[194296],"tags":[49,48,22073,449],"class_list":["post-766578","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-winnipeg","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-winnipeg","tag-winnipeg-jets"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/766578","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=766578"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/766578\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/766579"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=766578"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=766578"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=766578"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}