liveUpdated 1m agoFollow along as the second day of the NHL Draft gets rolling in Buffalo.Corey Pronman, Scott Wheeler and The Athletic NHL staffJune 27, 2026 at 7:10 AM EDTThe second day of the draft begins at 11 a.m. ET Saturday. Bruce Bennett / Getty ImagesInside Mathis Preston’s ‘whirlwind’ draft year, and why his skill still stands out When Hnat Domenichelli finished his prep for the 2026 WHL trade deadline, there was one name at the top of his list: Mathis Preston.
And so on Jan. 5, the then-Vancouver Giants general manager took his swing, dealing two players and a 2026 first-round pick to Spokane for Preston and a 2029 second-rounder.
“It was a big trade,” Domenichelli told The Athletic, “but I just really like him as a player. He has qualities that you can’t really teach.”Villeneuve and Preston might go quick Xavier Villeneuve and Mathis Preston are my two best players available to start Day 2, and I won't be surprised if they're the first two players taken to kick things off tomorrow.I wonder about Preston to the Canucks at No. 33 and Villeneuve to the Blackhawks at No. 34.Winners and losers from 2026 NHL Draft first round: Sharks bolster impressive young core Welcome to my pick-by-pick breakdown of the entire first round of the 2026 NHL Draft.
