Buffalo Sabres general manager Jarmo Kekalainen may have another trick or two up his sleeve before the opening round of the 2026 NHL Draft takes places on Friday night at the KeyBank Center but, as it stands, the club owns the No. 4 and No. 20 overall selections.
The Sabres acquired the fourth pick on Tuesday night as part of the trade sending defenseman Bowen Byram and winger Jordan Greenway to the Chicago Blackhawks. They also moved up from No. 27 to the 20th slot by sending blueliner Michael Kesselring to the San Jose Sharks.
Kekalainen will survey the trade market to see whether one (or both) of those picks can be used to acquire proven NHL talent. Buffalo could benefit from adding a top-six forward, a second-pairing defenseman and maybe a goalie before the 2026-27 season gets underway.
If those type of moves aren't available at the moment, keeping the picks to add a couple high-upside prospects to the farm system is a perfectly fine alternative. Let's check out some potential options based on mock drafts from ESPN's Rachel Kryshak and Bleacher Report's Hannah Stuart.
No. 4 overall pick
ESPN: Caleb Malhotra, C, Brantford Bulldogs (OHL)
Bleacher Report: Viggo Bjorck, C/W, Djurgardens IF (SHL)
The Sabres top-four defense group, which was the driving force behind the team's long-awaited turnaround in 2025-26, suddenly has a gaping hole after the departure of Byram.
Buffalo may opt for one of the draft class' top defensemen, Chase Reid or Carson Carels, if there's a belief one of them could be ready to make the NHL jump before the end of the upcoming campaign. Otherwise, it'll likely be best player available for Kekalainen and Co. with the fourth choice.
Malhotra, a Boston University commit, is coming off a breakthrough season with the Bulldogs, tallying 84 points (29 goals and 55 assists) in 67 games. He continued his impressive play in the OHL playoffs with 13 goals and 13 helpers in 15 postseason contests.
The 6-foot-2 center processes the game at an extremely high level for a teenager, and he's become more dangerous offensively while getting more confident in his shot. His well-rounded toolkit has all the makings of a future top-six center.
Bjorck dominated the junior ranks in his native Sweden — 98 points in 36 games at the U18 level in 2023-24 and 74 points in 42 outings against U20 competition in 2024-25 — which earned him a chance to play in the SHL, the top flight of Swedish hockey, this season.
His numbers were predictably modest against older, stronger professional opponents (15 points in 42 appearances for Djurgardens), but his compete level remained off the charts. He'd be a perfect fit between Zach Benson and Josh Doan a year or two from now in Buffalo.
No. 20 overall pick
ESPN: Ilia Morozov, C, Miami (Ohio) Redhawks (NCAA)
Bleacher Report: JP Hurlbert, C/W, Kamloops Blazers (WHL)
The Sabres' organizational depth chart is quite impressive. They're only a few pieces away from legitimate Stanley Cup contention at the NHL level and there's a large contingent of prospects getting close to pushing for roster spots in Buffalo.
Most of that next wave of young talent, aside from top prospects Konsta Helenius and Radim Mrtka, project more as middle-six forwards or bottom-four defensemen, though. They don't have a lot of future game-changers lurking in the minors.
That's why there's a strong argument for keeping both first-round picks in a deep 2026 draft. Aiming for a boom-or-bust prospect at No. 20 makes a ton of sense.
Morozov was the youngest player in college hockey this season (17) and held his own. He posted 20 points (eight goals and 12 assists) and wasn't a defensive liability, which is often a problem for players going up against a higher level of competition.
The biggest question will be whether his offense can take a noticeable step forward during his second season at Miami, If it does, his stock will skyrocket and he'll likely be ready to make the move to pro hockey as early as the 2027-28 campaign.
Hurlbert hasn't been a common name mocked to the Sabres in recent weeks but it makes sense after his terrific season with the Blazers. He racked up 97 points (42 goals and 55 assists) in 68 games to finish fourth in the WHL in scoring.
The 18-year-old Texas native also has a little physical edge to his game, which is definitely something Buffalo has targeted since Kekalainen took over the front office in December. The winger is committed to play college hockey at the University of Michigan starting in the fall.
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