The Ottawa Senators made a bold move in the first round of the 2026 NHL Draft by taking Jonas Lagerberg Hoen with the 25th overall selection.
The pick was mildly surprising, though not entirely out of left field. The club has been stocking up on skilled wingers to not only offset Brady Tkachuk’s departure but also add depth scoring.
And that’s the thing. Even with William Eklund and Andre Burakovsky in the mix, the Senators want more scoring. And who can blame them? Everyone is stocking up in the Atlantic Division.
That’s why the Senators made this pick.
Lagerberg Hoen has size at 6’2” and 190 pounds. He’s got the build to be a power forward, much of what Ottawa had with Brady Tkachuk.
The pick, nevertheless, is a bit of a reach. The Athletic ranked him 49th and did not include him in the first round. However, the scouting report on Lagerberg Hoen is that he’s tall and fast. His best attribute is a fantastic shot. That screams power play specialist.
What likely hurt his draft stock this season was a knee injury. He only played nine games in the Swedish U20 league. But in those nine games, he scored nine goals and 16 points. He played two games in the Swedish pro league, failing to score.
It’s safe to say that if he had played the entire season, Lagerberg Hoen would have been ranked much higher by scouts and pundits. The Senators clearly saw the skill, despite the injuries.
Now, the organization has a future top-six winger who likely needs to improve on his average-level skill set. The one thing he seemingly ranks low on is hockey sense. Of course, that’s a very subjective criterion.
The Senators reached a bit with this pick. But the organization had no guarantee he’d be around at No. 32. Most importantly, the Sens continue adding to their prospect pipeline.
Don’t look now, but this could be the steal of the first round.
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