Top-10 pick swap ideas hinge on one bold risk

rare top-10 – With the 2026 NHL Draft approaching in less than a week, the idea of a rare, top-five pick-for-established-player trade is back in focus—25 years after the Alexei Yashin blockbuster. The Mavericks of modern NHL roster building? San Jose, Chicago, and what it w

There’s a trade the NHL hasn’t seen for a quarter century—and it’s exactly the kind of move that makes rebuilding teams start whispering in the war room.

On draft day in 2001. the New York Islanders acquired Alexei Yashin for Zdeno Chara. Bill Muckalt and a second-overall selection that the Ottawa Senators used to take Jason Spezza. Twenty-five years later. the question now hanging over the 2026 NHL Draft is whether San Jose or Chicago could stage anything comparable before the draft gets going in less than one week—especially with the San Jose Sharks holding the second-overall pick and the Chicago Blackhawks owning the fourth-overall pick.

The Yashin swap isn’t just memorable because it was big. It’s notable because it involved a top-five pick that was already locked on an NHL draft board. It wasn’t the kind of first-round pick that got traded months or years in advance and then eventually became a top-five pick. It was a straight-line, pick-for-player deal built on a bet that a proven player would accelerate a team’s fortunes.

That’s the rarity anyone is trying to recreate.

To understand why this hypothetical matters, you have to remember what Yashin looked like at the start of this century. When the Isles acquired him, they were getting a 27-year-old, six-foot-three, right-shot centre. He was two years removed from being runner-up for the Hart Trophy. Even so. his arrival came with a stinging detail: he missed the entire 1999-2000 season due to a contract standoff with the Sens.

Now bring it back to the present—where the Sharks and Blackhawks. in their different ways. are being weighed down by the cost of patience. The most immediate obstacle is simple: even when picks are locked into the top 10. deals that send out established NHL players for that kind of draft capital are uncommon.

In the past 15 years. there have been only six instances of a locked-in selection in the back half of the top 10 being moved for an established player. In 2022, Ottawa got Alex DeBrincat from Chicago for No. 7. In 2021, Vancouver received Oliver Ekman-Larsson and Conor Garland from the Arizona Coyotes for No. 9. In 2017, the Coyotes sent Derek Stepan and Antti Raanta to the Rangers for No. 7. In 2013, the Devils acquired Cory Schneider from Vancouver for No. 9. In 2012, the Hurricanes landed Conn Smythe winner Jordan Staal from Pittsburgh for No. 8. And in 2011, the Blue Jackets got Jakub Voracek from Philadelphia for No. 8.

Every one of those deals happened either on draft day or within the 24 hours leading up to it.

So when speculation points toward the next six days and the possibility of another seismic move. the real tension isn’t just whether a trade could happen. It’s whether any general manager is willing to trade the kind of long-term upside that makes rebuilding plans feel safer—especially when history says it’s hard to do.

The idea also matters because the teams closest to those decisions have clear motives. Winnipeg has the No. 8 pick, Florida holds No. 9, and both situations are framed by pressure to get better. Winnipeg needs a 2C to help its veteran core. Florida, after an injury-ravaged season, is “all in,” gunning for a third title in four years.

Because the league doesn’t hand out these kinds of opportunities often, one set of proposals attempts to do the impossible math: one trade proposal each for pick Nos. 2, 4, 8 and 9 in the 2026 draft.

New York Rangers get the second-overall pick. San Jose Sharks get Adam Fox.

The thought process starts with a clean. high-ceiling pitch: the Rangers—trying to get back on their feet—would get the chance to draft second and fifth overall. and there’s the promise of building around pieces such as Ivar Stenberg and a future blueliner like Carson Carels or Keaton Verhoeff. On the Sharks side, the argument is positional and immediate. San Jose hasn’t been shy about adding veterans to augment its young core. and Fox would plug a major hole on the defense corps.

Fox is under contract for three more seasons, with the additional detail that he doesn’t turn 30 until 2028. In this version of the trade. San Jose’s lineup picture changes: Fox would provide a right-handed presence on the top two defensive pairings. handle power-play duties with Macklin Celebrini. and—if Michael Kesselring. a big. right-shot RFA defenceman acquired from Buffalo on Wednesday. fits on the third pair—suddenly make San Jose “strong on the starboard side of the D.”.

What gives you pause sits at the core of the Yashin-style leap. For New York, it would be a clear choice in favor of the long, rebuilding path. For San Jose. the counter-offer is the lure of a cheaper future: the Sharks would be drafting right-shot defenceman Chase Reid at No. 2. a prospect described as unlikely to be as good as Fox “any time soon. ” but potentially a long-term answer given his projected size of six-foot-two and eventually over 200 pounds.

Dallas Stars get the fourth-overall pick. Chicago Blackhawks get Jason Robertson, with an eight-year extension.

This one is built around contract gravity. Robertson is coming off his four-year bridge deal with Dallas and can be a UFA as early as the summer of 2027. There’s also the unresolved background that’s followed him for years: constant contract drama. along with the Stars hearing that 24-year-old breakout forward Mavrik Bourque could be a target for another team with an offer sheet.

From Dallas’ point of view, moving on from Robertson is described as extremely tough—yet the rebuild reset is the pitch. It allows Dallas to completely reset the books, land at No. 4, and take whoever slips through the first three picks.

Chicago’s side of the swap follows a different logic. The Hawks can’t just hope a draft picks strategy stays flawless—they need a stud player in his prime to move things along. After picking first (Connor Bedard). second (Artyom Levshunov) and third (Anton Frondell) in the past three drafts. Chicago is portrayed as needing a cornerstone talent sooner rather than later.

The risk is symmetrical. For Chicago, a deal like this is framed as a “slam-dunk.” For Dallas, the reality is that parting ways with such a fantastic player in the early prime of his NHL career isn’t easy.

Vancouver Canucks get the eighth-overall pick. Winnipeg Jets get Elias Pettersson, Jake DeBrusk, and 24th overall pick.

This proposal carries its own kind of urgency—one tied to the constant shadow over Winnipeg’s goaltending future. The mention of “recent rumblings” about Connor Hellebuyck’s immediate future in Winnipeg casts a temperature across everything. The premise is that Winnipeg’s veteran core is locked in. and if it moves toward an established replacement. it would likely go hard on a proven upgrade.

The focus here is a second-line puzzle that has lingered “for years” in Manitoba. But the twist is geography and psychology: the suggestion is that a Swedish player looking to re-establish himself as a star might handle pressure differently in Winnipeg than in Vancouver—especially after things went rotten there.

In this swap, Pettersson is paired with Jake DeBrusk, and Winnipeg also receives the 24th overall pick. The promise for Winnipeg is that the pieces could “re-made” the top-six forward group on the fly.

The cap hit is spelled out directly: Pettersson is never going to live up to his $11.6-million cap hit. Even so, the proposal leans on Winnipeg’s team-friendly deals for players like Mark Scheifele, Josh Morrissey and—“for now, anyway”—Hellebuyck.

There’s also a specific performance target in the pitch: could Pettersson be a 70-point guy for the Jets? If he does, the argument says it would be a massive upgrade on what Winnipeg has been getting from that slot in the past few years.

Vancouver’s side of the deal is about structure and fit. The Canucks can cut bait on “a couple guys” who don’t fit with a long rebuild. and the upside is draft capital: Vancouver would be drafting twice in the first eight selections—giving a chance to find both a cornerstone forward and a blue liner in those spots.

The hesitation is about the contract and the gamble. Even with a rising cap, Pettersson’s contract would be debilitating if he never gets untracked. The logic is blunt: acquiring a distressed asset always carries downside, because if it didn’t, it wouldn’t be available.

Seattle Kraken get the ninth-overall pick. Florida Panthers get Jesper Wallstedt. Minnesota Wild get Dylan Larkin. Detroit Red Wings get Matty Beniers.

If there’s an “excitement” section to this story, it lives here—in a four-team swap built to make the next few days feel electric.

Florida would use it to reset the crease by acquiring Jesper Wallstedt and letting Sergei Bobrovsky walk. Minnesota is framed as the most logical landing spot for Dylan Larkin after his trade request. Detroit. in turn. would be taking on risk by acquiring Matty Beniers as the replacement—though the proposal leans on the fact that Beniers is a former rookie of the year who plays a premium position and “could yet be entering the best years of his NHL career.”.

Seattle’s reason for joining the deal is also laid out without pretending it’s a one-swing guarantee. The Kraken would probably prefer a bigger trade that moves the franchise forward immediately. But the proposal asks whether they are really “one swing away” from real relevance anyway. The counter is draft pragmatism: pick seventh and ninth overall with an eye to being a wagon in three years when Berkly Catton and Jake O’Brien hit their stride.

Alternatively, the Kraken could put either pick in play on draft day for someone who can play right now.

The pause, in this scenario, comes down to Wallstedt and eggs-in-baskets. Even if the move lands Minnesota a No. 1 centre. the Wild would likely be uneasy about parting with 23-year-old Wallstedt and his “stud potential.” For Detroit. there’s also a specific worry: wanting multiple pieces from a Larkin trade to spread risk. because putting all eggs in the Beniers basket could further damage morale if it doesn’t work out.

All of these proposals share a common thread. They’re built on the same rare bet the Islanders made in 2001—spend draft capital now, pull forward the kind of talent that changes a team’s face.

The question hovering over the next six days isn’t whether it’s possible to write a trade proposal on paper. It’s whether any general manager will walk into a draft week believing the risk is worth it. knowing the league has only shown that kind of top-10 pick-for-player volatility a handful of times in years.

NHL trade 2026 NHL Draft San Jose Sharks Chicago Blackhawks Alexei Yashin Adam Fox Jason Robertson Elias Pettersson Dylan Larkin Jesper Wallstedt Matty Beniers