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Maple Leafs receive A+ in Daily Faceoff’s post-draft report card
Photo credit: Steven Ellis/Daily Faceoff
Jun 28, 2026, 08:30 EDTUpdated: Jun 28, 2026, 08:24 EDT
The 2026 NHL Entry Draft is officially in the books.
While most of the attention for Toronto Maple Leafs fans this year was focused on the selection of Gavin McKenna at first overall, the team came away with an impressive 10-player haul through the seven-round event.
So how did Toronto’s draft stack up against the NHL’s other 31 franchises? For that, we turn to Daily Faceoff’s Steven Ellis, who graded the draft performance of all 32 teams on Saturday. Ellis was a big fan of the work of new GM John Chayka and his team, giving the Maple Leafs an A+.
Listing Toronto’s notable picks as Gavin McKenna, Alexander Bilecki, Ethan MacKenzie, Ellis wrote:
The franchise-changing pick of Gavin McKenna was a no-brainer. But then, Toronto continued to make hit after hit the rest of the way. Alexander Bilecki had a huge end to the season in Kitchener, leading them to the Memorial Cup. I like how effectively Ethan MacKenzie kills plays and how much of a pest Zach Olsen is. Mans Gudmundsson is a decent third-pairing option, and scouts think Juuso Ainasto is guaranteed to be an NHLer. We’ll see about that, but I feel really confident that most of Toronto’s picks in the top three rounds will make it to the NHL. McKenna is doing a lot of the heavy lifting here, for sure, but any time you can get the best player in the draft, you’re a winner.
McKenna is the headline grabber, no doubt, but Ellis highlights the wealth of talent the Maple Leafs walked away with on Saturday as well. Rounds 2 and 3 for Toronto were led off with the selection of big defencemen in Alexander Bilecki and Ethan MacKenzie, who are currently listed at 6-foot-2, 181 lbs. and 6-foot-1, 187 lbs., respectively. MacKenzie is one to watch offensively, with 58 points in 59 games with the WHL’s Edmonton Oil Kings this past season. He is now committed to the University of North Dakota for the fall.
Swapping Brandon Carlo for two third-round picks was further tidy work from Chayka, allowing the team to select Saskatoon Blades winger Zach Olsen and Färjestad BK defenceman Mans Gudmundsson. Toronto wrapped its third round with the selection of goaltender Juuso Ainasto. The Maple Leafs love their huge goalies, and Ainasto fits the bill at 6-foot-4, 198 lbs.
After those six picks in the first three rounds, Toronto managed to come away with four more selections in the final four rounds, walking away with a deep class of 2026. For further analysis of Toronto’s performance at the draft, see The Leafs Nation’s full breakdown of the Maple Leafs’ 10 picks here.
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