Three picks in the 2026 NHL Draft first round may not be rich enough for the St. Louis Blues. The club is putting concerted effort into trying to move up from their current standing at 11th-overall, TSN’s Darren Dreger shared on Hockey Sense with Andy Strickland. Dreger added that the San Jose Sharks, who currently sit at second-overall, could be willing to move down from their current selection.
The last top-three pick to be traded also belonged to the Sharks, who sent what would become the 2020 third-overall pick to the Ottawa Senators in their September 2018 acquisition of star defenseman Erik Karlsson. Toronto also traded what would become the 2010 second-overall pick to Boston in September 2009, setting up the Bruins’ selection of Tyler Seguin. The last instance of a top-three pick changing hands after it was declared came in 2003 – when the Pittsburgh Penguins moved from the third-overall pick up to first-overall to select Marc-Andre Fleury.
St. Louis could feel driven to pull off a trade of this magnitude by a rare opportunity in front of them. While star scorer Gavin McKenna has dominated attention for first-overall, Swedish phenom Ivar Stenberg – the younger brother of Blues prospect Otto Stenberg – has formed a strong case behind him. The younger Stenberg is currently lighting up the IIHF Men’s World Championships with seven points in six games. He has cemented a top-line role on Team Sweden, capping off a year that saw him earn a similar spot on Frolunda HC, who finished second in the SHL regular season.
Stenberg is a true dynamo, capable of dominating games with his breakaway speed and heads-up playmaking. He can hold the puck for as long as needed to create sneaky and successful scoring chances. He is just as involved away from the puck, staying focused in scoring areas and working to make plays on defense. That full-ice impact made Stenberg hard to ignore since he made his SHL debut last season.
The older Stenberg also made waves over the season, earning his NHL debut in mid-December and ultimately scoring 10 points in 32 games of what would become his NHL rookie season. That was only seven points fewer than the scoring total he posted in 36 AHL games. He seemed comfortable at the top level and – after easing into the role – embraced a much-needed center position in St. Louis. His arrival could help St. Louis justify selecting yet another winger headed likely headed for a top-six role, after they landed Justin Carbonneau in the 2025 class.
Ivar Stenberg would bring true top-end ability to the Blues lineup. It would be a final piece for St. Louis, who has already seen wingers Dylan Holloway, Jake Neighbours, and Jimmy Snuggerud excel in their top-nine roles. But while they have each excelled in limited top-line minutes, they’ve proven most effective when rotating through the lineup with each other. Stenberg could add another strong impact to that mix until he can graduate into a lineup-leading role.
The cost of pulling off the first top-three trade in more than two decades wouldn’t be cheap. Many expect San Jose to target an addition on defense after adding Michael Misa with the second-overall pick last season. The Sharks would likely find strong defenders still on the board outside of the top-five, just as they would at second-overall, in a draft class filled with high-end, defense prospects. Moving down would offer a chance to add even more to their riches – potentially emerging defense prospect Theo Lindstein or shutdown defenders Colin Ralph or Arseni Koromyslov from St. Louis’ pool. The Sharks could also ask for multiple first-round picks from a Blues club currently wielding picks 11, 15, and the Colorado Avalanche’s undetermined first-rounder. Packaging all three picks could be enough to make a deal – though adding another prospect could prove a worthwhile supplement.
The St. Louis Blues have made multiple bold decisions to revamp the lineup from its 2023-24 state. They surprisingly fired Drew Bannister mid-season and offer-sheeted Edmonton Oilers free-agents Holloway and Philip Broberg. Those additions helped push them to the 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs, but couldn’t return them to the 2026 postseason. That could be cause for one more bold decision before Doug Armstrong leaves the post he has held for longer than a decade. In doing so, St. Louis – a team that began built around a trio of brothers – would be hoping to land their eighth set of siblings in franchise history.
Photo courtesy of Jerome Miron-Imagn Images.
I’d be pissed if Greir traded three mediocre 1sts for the 2OA. They have quantity as it is. If STL could acquire the 3rd or 4th pick then swap with the sharks we’d be in business. Sharks should 100% get either of the top 2 forwards or the top 3 D.
Kyrou and the 11th and 15th, should be enough to move to #2.
It’s effectively an open auction for Stenburg so teams should be making their bids now. No need for the Sharks to settle for a low bid offer from the Blues
Low bid? Draft picks hold potential but are not proven. The Blues drafted Robert Thomas 20th and he is worth a ton as a legit #1 center. The Blues have pieces to make the deal work and San Jose, I would think would be stock piling prospects and depth. They have some stars that are going to get paid and they need to develop a ton of depth. You can only have so many stars that you can afford.
Sharks no.1 priority right now is a top 4 defender, doubt a deal get done without one coming back to SJ
Paryako and the 11th and 31st?
I could see that
28 y/o…coming off an injury + an $8M salary. Although the cabinet is pretty bare at RW after Graf, San Jose needs blue line help. IMO, that is not enough. Sharks have the top rated farm system. They need more quality, not quantity.
In the 2nd last paragraph you talk about the Sharks not minding to drop down to 5thOA for a Dman but not sure where that comes into the conversation when the Blues earliest pick is 11th OA as you mention once or twice in the article and the best Dmen will likely be gone by then.
This is confusing wording on my end – we’ll adjust accordingly, thank you for the comment!
if im the Hawks id build the deal around Robert Thomas and a pick swap, but i still think targeting Jason Robertson trade or offer sheet should be priority #1 after extending Bedard
The Hawks package to land Thomas would be a lot more than that. It would hurt a lot and I don’t think they deal him at all. I commend the thought though. I think the hawks should use the pick and continue to build. It would be nice to see the Blues and Hawks on a similar path in rebuilding. Build up the rivalry.
Blues should offer sheet Mavrik Bourque
If they want to take a shot at getting him with a $4m/year offer they should trade the Colorado 1st round pick to Anaheim to get their 2027 2nd round pick back (plus maybe a 4th or something).
Or they could offer Bourque $7m to increase their odds. I would trade the No. 15 to, say, the Kings for LA’s 2027 1st round pick. Then STL can use their own 1st rounder as offer sheet compensation, still have a 2027 first round pick, and 2 2026 first rounders
Canes want Binnington
Why? Anything to prove that you are doing anything more than guessing
It’s extremely unlikely to deal from outside top-10 to a top-2 pick, so as mentioned a pair of separate deals may be required… Let’s say San Jose is drafting Reid, then it comes to Vancouver – who are rumoured to be hot-and-heavy for Malhotra. If Chicago is willing to take Kyrou, No.11 plus a prospect for No4, then Blues could negotiate a switch with the Canucks at No. 3 for St Louis’ 2nd 1st rd pick…