NHL taps Buffalo Sabres to host upcoming draft headlined by top prospect McKenna

With highly prized prospect Gavin McKenna as the centrepiece, NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman announced on Monday the Buffalo Sabres will host the league's draft in June.

Bettman made the announcement while joined by Sabres executives, including team owner Terry Pegula, during a news conference before Buffalo's home game against the Florida Panthers.

The two-day draft was already set for June 26-27, with the league going with a decentralized format for a second straight year. The format features prospects and their families attending the draft, while teams make the picks from their home markets.

The draft in Buffalo will be held at the Sabres home arena, KeyBank Center. That's a switch from last year, when the two-day event was held at the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles.

Buffalo has also been home to the NHL's annual pre-draft combine since 2015, and will once again host the league's top prospects this spring. This will mark the fourth time the Sabres host the draft, with the previous time being in 2016, when Auston Matthews was selected No. 1 by the Toronto Maple Leafs.

This time, all eyes will be on McKenna, the Penn State freshman forward who has long been projected to be the 2026 draft's No. 1 pick.

The 18-year-old McKenna is from Whitehorse, Yukon, and made a major splash this summer when he elected to leave the Canadian Hockey League after two-plus seasons in Medicine Hat, Alberta, and make the jump to Happy Valley. The move south came in the first offseason after the NCAA lifted its longtime ban in making CHL players eligible to compete at the college ranks.

McKenna has been labelled a "generational talent," and regarded as the 2026 draft's top prospect since 2024.

McKenna ranks fourth on the Nittany Lions and