Ducks 2026 Day Two Draft Recap

By Thomas Harrington

The Anaheim Ducks entered the second day of the draft with six picks: 45th overall, 50th overall, 82nd overall, 146th overall, 178th overall, and 210th overall. During the draft, the Ducks then traded John Carlson’s rights to the Carolina Hurricanes for defensive prospect Kyle Masters and the 192nd overall pick.

Anaheim chose defenseman Jayden Kurtz, using the pick they acquired from Buffalo in the Olen Zellweger trade; forward Mathis Preston in the second round; forward Rian Chudzinski in the third round; defenseman Eric Frossard in the fifth round; goaltender Gleb Peshkov and forward Noah Kosick, using the pick they got from Carolina for Carlson, in the sixth round; and defenseman James Rieber in the seventh round.

Jayden Kurtz, 2nd Round, 45th Overall

Kurtz is a smooth-skating, right-handed shooting defenseman who primarily played in high school this past year, but also suited up for 16 games with the Chicago Steel of the USHL, where he scored a goal and three points. At Rogers High, he was one of the team’s alternate captains and scored 13 goals and 38 points in 26 games. Kurtz also played for Team APX of the UMHSEHL for 21 games, where he scored three goals and 11 points.

He’s committed to the University of Wisconsin starting in the 2027-2028 season. He’ll likely be in the USHL playing for Chicago this coming season. Similar to Jackson LaCombe, Kurtz played forward earlier in his career. Now, he’s a strong two-way player, but will need to improve his overall game if he wants to make it to the NHL. After a year in the USHL, he’ll probably spend anywhere from two to four years in the NCAA, so it will be a number of years before he turns pro and we see him in Anaheim or San Diego.

Mathis Preston, 2nd Round, 50th Overall

Preston played in the WHL this past season, starting the year with the Spokane Chiefs before being traded to the Vancouver Giants. With Spokane, Preston scored 14 goals and 32 points in 36 games. He was even better with Vancouver, where he scored four goals and 12 points in 10 games. Preston also played for Team Canada at the Under 18 tournament, where he scored two goals and six points in five games. He also missed about two months of action with an injury but played well after he got back to full health. Preston is one of the fastest players in the draft, and is smaller than a typical Pat Verbeek player, standing at 5’11”.

However, he won’t be 18 until July, so he’s got a lot of room to grow. Preston will likely be back in the WHL for the next couple of seasons. After that, the decision will need to be made if he’s ready to turn pro, go back to juniors for an overage season, or go the NCAA route. Given how many Anaheim prospects have recently gone to college after the CHL, I’d expect Preston to take a similar path, unless he absolutely dominates the WHL for the next couple of years. Given his age, he’s another player who is likely several years away from making it to the NHL.

Rian Chudzinski, 3rd Round 82nd Overall

Chudzinski played for the Moncton Wildcats of the QMJHL this past season. In his first season playing Canadian juniors, he scored 21 goals and 38 points in 54 games. Moncton qualified for the playoffs, and Chudzinski scored six goals and 17 points in 21 games. He’s a strong defensive player who’s good at retrieving pucks. If he makes it to the NHL, it won’t be for his offensive game, but rather for his physical play and strong two-way game. He plays a physical game and goes to the net to create offense. Chudzinski should spend the next couple of years in the QMJHL. Similar to Preston, at that point, he could turn pro, opt to stay in juniors a little longer, or go the college route.

Eric Frossard, 5th Round 146th Overall

Frossard played for the Guelph Storm of the OHL this past season, scoring five goals and 14 points in 51 games. In four postseason games he recorded one assist. Frossard is 6’5” and is a shut down defenseman. He doesn’t put up a ton of points, but plays a strong, physical game and many expected him to go as early as the third round in the draft. Despite his size, he’s a good skater and uses his size to disrupt rush chances by opposing teams. Frossard will play one more season in the OHL for Guelph so he can play for the Memorial Cup. After that, he’ll move over to the NCAA and play for the University of Notre Dame. I’d expect him to spend three or four seasons there before he looks to turn pro.

Gleb Peshkov, 6th Round 178th Overall

Peshkov played for the Taifun Primorsky Krai in the MHL this past season. He had a 22-15-8 record with a 2.04 goals against average, .930 save percentage, and five shutouts. He played in two playoff-qualifying games but lost both, with a 3.55 goals against average and a .877 save percentage. Peshkov is a competitive athlete who moves quickly in the net. It’s not uncommon for Anaheim to take a goalie in later round of the draft, as they took Elijah Neuenschwander in the fourth round of the 2025 NHL Entry Draft, Vyacheslav Buteyets in the sixth round of the 2022 NHL Entry Draft, and Gage Alexander in the fifth round of the 2021 NHL Entry Draft.

Peshkov will likely be back in the MHL this coming season, but will hopefully see some time in the KHL as well. Goaltenders are notoriously difficult to predict, and him playing in Russia makes it even harder to say when we’ll see him in San Diego or Anaheim. Buteyets played in Russia for two years after being drafted before coming stateside, and I’d expect Pechkov to also play at least two more seasons in Russia, if not more, before he comes over and likely plays for the San Diego Gulls. It will be a number of years before we see him in an Anaheim uniform.

Noah Kosick, Sixth Round 192nd Overall

Kosick played in the WHL this past season, starting the year with the Swift Current Broncos and then being traded to the Seattle Thunderbirds. With Swift Current, he played in 37 games and scored 10 goals and 34 points. With Seattle, he played in 32 games and scored six goals and 20 points. In five playoff games, Kosick scored a goal and five points. He’s more of a playmaker than a scorer, and uses his vision to control the ice. He’s one of the youngest players in the draft; he won’t be 18 until August. He’ll likely be back in the WHL for one more season before leaving it for the NCAA; he’s committed to the University of Michigan starting in the 2027-2028 season. Given his young age, I’d expect Kosick to spend all four years in the NCAA before he looks to turn pro and hopefully join the Gulls.

James Rieber, 7th Round 210th Overall

Rieber is a right-handed shooting defenseman who played for the Waterloo Black Hawks of the USHL this past year, scoring two goals and 11 points in 60 games. He missed only two games all season, leading rookies on the team in games played. Rieber will be returning to Waterloo this coming season and then moving on to the NCAA the following year. He’s committed to Miami University, and I expect him to play there for three or four years before he considers turning pro.

Final Thoughts

Including Nikita Klepov and Marcus Nordmark, the Ducks made a total of nine selections in the 2026 NHL Entry Draft. They chose four wingers, one center, three defensemen, and one goaltender. The Ducks chose two players from the USHL, five players from Canadian juniors, one in the MHL, and one from Sweden’s top junior league. However, a number of the players from the CHL will be moving on to the NCAA this coming season or the next one, as will both of the USHL players. Klepov is clearly the closest to the NHL of these nine picks, but don’t expect to see him in an Anaheim uniform this coming season.

Overall, this could end up being a fantastic draft for the Ducks, or a rather forgettable one. Anaheim really bet on high-end skill, particularly with the Klepov, Nordmark, and Preston picks. It remains to be seen how these three, and the rest of the class, develop in the coming years. Some years, the Ducks have a safe draft, where it feels like they picked future NHL players but not necessarily star players. This year, their focus on skill means a lot of these players are boom or bust picks. If they work out, they could become NHL stars, but if they don’t, many won’t see any time in the NHL. For now, many of these players will be at the upcoming Ducks Development camp. Some of them will also be at training camp in the fall, before going on to their respective teams for the season.

Related Articles:

Carlson’s Rights Trade To Carolina

Zellweger Traded To Buffalo

McTavish Traded To St. Louis

Ducks 2026 First Round Recap

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June 28th, 2026