Jun 26, 2026; Buffalo, New York, USA; Gavin McKenna puts on a sweater beside NHL commissioner Gary Bettman and singer Justin Bieber after being selected with the first pick in the first round of the 2026 NHL Draft by the Toronto Maple Leafs at KeyBank Center. Mandatory Credit: Timothy T. Ludwig-Imagn Images

A new season is just around the corner.

A new crop of future stars.

With the shorter pre-season, there are fewer chances for youngsters to state their case for NHL employment, but there are still plenty of up-and-comers to keep close tabs on between now the puck drop on the 2026-27 campaign.

Here are a half-dozen we are most curious to watch:

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Gavin McKenna, Toronto Maple Leafs

This year’s top draft pick not only has elite skills, but the opportunity to make his mark with as little pressure as possible in a media-heavy market. McKenna will not have the burden to be big dog on a Toronto squad that boasts several talented forwards, notably Auston Matthews, William Nylander and John Tavares.

The pre-season will be a chance to see where to slot the left winger. Most likely, he will end up with Tavares and Nylander, but it stands to reason seeing how he fares with Matthews and likely Jack Roslovic.

Ivar Stenberg, San Jose Sharks

Stenberg, the second pick this year, is the latest uber-talented skater to join a Sharks club expected to vault into playoff contention.

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The forward capable of playing both wings made a whale of a debut in his first rookie-class game by scoring a pair of goals 25 seconds apart in a rout of the Los Angeles Kings hopefuls on Saturday.

It will be fascinating to see in the coming games how he is used on a club that has several young forwards, notably centers Macklin Celebrini and Michael Misa, and already proven wingers in Will Smith and Collin Graf, plus second-year NHLer Igor Chernyshov.

Cole Hutson, Washington Capitals

The younger brother of 2024-25 Calder Trophy winner, Lane, is due to make his mark. Cole, also a defenseman, showed well in a 14-game stint last season after his sophomore year at Boston University, netting three goals and seven assists for a Washington club that missed the playoffs by four points.

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Washington took bold moves in the off-season to shore up, but it is obvious Hutson is a key to the future. With John Carlson’s departure, Hutson will be given his chance to provide much-needed offense from the blueline.

Porter Martone, Philadelphia Flyers

Martone make a big splash when he joined the Flyers after his lone season at Michigan State and collected 15 points (six goals, nine assists) in 19 combined regular-season and playoff contests.

The power forward will be given every chance to be a top-line right winger. Key will be how he fares over a long season against the league’s big bodies, but the pre-season is a golden chance to set himself up for a big campaign.

Roman Kantserov/Anton Frondell, Chicago Blackhawks

Frondell and Kantserov are pegged to finally give Connor Bedard much-needed young offensive support for the floundering Blackhawks.

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Frondell, the third pick of the 2025 draft, netted nine points (three goals, six assists) in a dozen games for Chicago last season. Kantserov (44th overall in 2023) notched 36 goals and 64 points for Magnitogorsk of the KHL last season.

Bedard may miss the first month, which gives the pair of forwards an opportunity to find their footing in a bigger role for a club that has missed the playoffs seven consecutive seasons.

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Kyler Murray isn’t out of the woods yet. But, to be sure, the simple fact that he’s being discussed as a possibility for the next game is itself a promising sign.

Kevin O’Connell chatted with the media earlier in the afternoon. Doing so functioned as a platform for the affable coach to offer further insight on Minnesota’s quarterback situation. Per O’Connell, the approach is to take things a day at a time while seeing if the veteran can roll for Week 2: “He came in feeling pretty good today.” Not long afterwards, the skipper said “we’ll just take it a day at a time.”

Minnesota is going to lean on the medical professionals to determine whether Murray can go.

Making the overall team health outlook appear a touch worse is that running back Jordan Mason is going to get some further tests to see about a thumb injury. The sense is that this is mostly precautionary but the Vikings will chase down some added clarity to ensure they’re understanding the extent of the issue.

Kyler Murray, Jordan Mason, & MIN’s Injuries

Part of the reason for O’Connell having some optimism is that a quarterback is the red jersey player. Put differently, the QB isn’t tasked with a massive physical workload throughout the week under normal circumstances, meaning Murray can do a ton just by being present to digest the weekly game plan.

At this stage, though, it’s tough to envision Murray going out for Week 2.

Minnesota’s goal isn’t to be the best version of itself in September. Rather, the goal is to be a juggernaut by the time January arrives. Being able to get into the playoffs is no longer good enough even as that’s the first goal, a prerequisite while moving toward the broader goal. What’s needed is to get into the final tournament and then stack up wins. Can the Vikings do this without Kyler Murray?

The point, folks, is to suggest that caution is to be advised. Murray is a 29-year-old passer who suffered a concussion following a brutal hit. Give the man the time he needs to ensure he’s sitting in a really good spot. The Vikings need only to look toward the 2025 season to see the issues that can arise with a perpetually injured QB1 (J.J. McCarthy) and a key player working through multiple concussions (Ryan Kelly).

So, expect a week off.

There’s then the update about RB1/2 Jordan Mason, who played some strong ball on Sunday. O’Connell clarified that the rugged runner showed up today with a thumb problem that’s going to go for further tests to see the extent of the injury.

“[Mason] came in just with a little bit of a sore thumb, and he’s actually being checked out, evaluated,” O’Connell said. When pushed for added clarity, O’Connell noted that “we’ll get a picture of [Mason’s thumb] just to see what’s going on.”

Obviously, the run game is going to take on a renewed importance if the Vikings are without Kyler Murray for any amount of time. Mason has been picked as a breakout candidate by many observers due to being a 27-year-old RB journeying into a contract season and after being praised for being in excellent shape.

For whatever it’s worth, the Vikings saw practice squad runner DeeJay Dallas do some excellent work on special teams against the Packers. He could get called upon yet again to ensure the RB depth is solid going into another NFC North game. Otherwise, the burden would fall to rookie Demond Claiborne, who had a tough training camp and preseason.

The Minnesota Vikings travel to Chicago for a Week 2 game against the Bears. Both teams are sitting at 1-0.

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