A day after selecting 18-year-old Swedish centre Viggo Bjork with the eighth overall pick of the 2026 NHL Entry Draft in Buffalo, the Winnipeg Jets further stocked their organizational depth chart with the addition of six selections on Saturday Afternoon.
Following the completion of the draft, Jets Director of Amateur Scouting Mark Hillier could not have been more direct in his assessment of Bjorck.
“I have to be honest, he’s one of the most exciting draft picks I’ve ever had. I think he’s one of the smartest players in the draft this year, he’s one of the smartest players I’ve scouted,” Hillier told members of the media.
“If he signs, he’s given an opportunity — he’s going to make it real hard not to play.”
Winnipeg did not have a pick in the second round as a result of a 2025 deadline deal with the Pittsburgh Penguins for defenceman Luke Schenn. With the 71st overall pick in the third round, the Jets drafted 18-year-old Slovakian-born Goalie Samuel Hrenek who spent this past season playing for the Fargo Force of the USHL.
Hrenek did not hide his sheer joy over being taken by the Jets when he spoke with reporters.
“Just in general, we had a great talk about a lot of things and I just felt the most interest from Winnipeg,” said Hrenek, whose older brother David — also a goaltender — was a fifth-round pick of the Los Angeles Kings in 2018.
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“I’m excited to show the organization what’s in me and why they made the right choice.”
Hrenek started in nine games for the Force in 2025-26 and posted a 2.20 goals against average with a .918 saves percentage and a 7-1-1 record.
In Round Four, Winnipeg took Apple Valley, Minnesota native Zach Wooten with the 116th pick. The left-winger turned 20 in February and scored 35 goals to go along with 27 assists for 62 points in 61 games for the USHL’s Green Bay Gamblers.
Wooten earned an invite to play in the Chipotle All-American Game — an annual event showcasing the top NHL draft-eligible players in the USHL during the league’s holiday break.
“It was awesome for me. It was something I didn’t necessarily expect; it’s my third year of draft eligibility so it was pretty unexpected when I got that call from my coach,” said Wooten, who is going to continue his development with the University of Wisconsin this coming season.
The Jets drafted Quebec Remparts defenceman Alexandre Taillefer with the 135th pick of the draft in Round Five. The left-shot rear guard from Richelieu, Que., made the six-hour-plus drive to Buffalo with his family to experience the draft live and says there was some anxiety building before hearing his name called.
“Yeah, I was definitely nervous a bit. I think the decision was I had a good chance to be drafted and it’s not so far from home,” explained Taillefer. “I’m a two-way defenceman, a dynamic player — I like to make the first pass and plays and stuff and I love to be physical, too.”
Taillefer played in only 28 games for the Remparts after suffering an Achilles injury, but Hillier feels there is a lot of upside to be tapped into for what he described as an interesting prospect.
“He’s a dynamic skater that we feel is one of the best skating defencemen in the draft,” Hillier said, saying the plan is for Taillefer to return to Quebec next year and play a full season.
In the sixth round the Jets took Alaska-born centre Landon Hafele, who was a teammate of Wooten with Green Bay. The 18-year-old pivot scored 15 goals and added 27 assists for 42 points in 52 games for the Gamblers. Hafele has committed to the Arizona State Wildcats.
Winnipeg had two selections in the seventh and final round and went for 18-year-old defenceman Noa Ta’Amu of the Edmonton Oil Kings (199th) and 20-year-old Goalie John Parsons of Providence College (220th). Ta’Amu scored three goals and added nine assists for 12 points in 63 games with the Oil Kings, while Parsons was 13-5 with a 2.05 GAA and .922 SP in 19 starts for the Friars.
The San Diego-born Ta’Amu helped the United States win the U18 Gretzky-Hlinka Cup in 2025 and is the first player of Samoan descent to ever be drafted by an NHL team. His father Ed was a fourth-round pick of Minnesota in the 2002 NFL draft and was an offensive lineman for the Vikings and Houston Texans.
Hillier says the Jets didn’t know a whole lot about Noa at the start of the year but like his “old school” approach to playing the game. “He’s not afraid to drop the gloves and scrap. Stay at home D and play hard.”
Most, if not all of the players selected by the Jets in the 2026 draft are expected to attend the team’s development camp next week at Winnipeg’s Hockey For All Centre.
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