The Montreal Canadiens traded up from 28th to 26th in the draft by adding their own third-round pick in 2027 to the deal.
With the 26th pick in the 2026 NHL Draft, the Montreal Canadiens have selected Gleb Pugachyov.
It’s the third year in a row that Montreal’s first pick of the draft has come out of Russia.
Pugachyov is a big left-shot right-winger, coming in at 6’3″ and 225 pounds. He played the majority of his draft season in the MHL, but also got 15 games in the VHL and 13 in the KHL scoring two goals and adding an assist in his games in Russia’s top league.
While maybe not a potent offensive player, he is a physical one who plays and hits hard, yet was quite disciplined in his draft year with 55 penalty minutes in 61 games before taking 23 in an MHL playoff run.
