The St. Louis Blues came out of the 2026 NHL draft with nine prospects, seriously bolstering the organization's depth as they try to contend in the short term and long. There were a few surprises along the way--like trading for Mason McTavish and passing on Ethan Belchetz for Maddox Dagenais--but once you get to the mid- and late-round picks, you're really blindly throwing darts at the board and hoping for the best.
There is one prospect, however, that the Blues may've gotten who could far outperform his draft slot.
A sixth round steal?
Lars Steiner, taken 171st overall in the sixth round of the 2026 draft, has the sort of player profile that most modern NHL general managers aren't too enticed by. He's barely 5-foot-10, weighs 176 pounds, and plays on the wing; there is a near-endless list of prospects with that profile who are total busts. Taking an undersized winger in the early parts of the draft--unless their skill is so good it doesn't matter, like with Gavin McKenna--is asking for trouble.
The Swiss forward, however, does have some believers: he was ranked 63rd in Elite Prospect's annual draft guide. The Blues would get an incredible return on investment if the sixth-rounder is even a third-line winger. That's part of the problem, though: Steiner will have to distinguish himself as a top-nine forward, because undersized guys rarely get a roster spot on the fourth line. His tenacity and drive may make him an exception, though.
Recent players in Steiner's mold
The first player that comes to mind is probably recent Stanley Cup winner Logan Stankoven, though he's almost certainly more talented on paper than Steiner--ditto for Zach Benson, who also popped in the playoffs for the Buffalo Sabres.
A more realistic comp may be the Philadelphia Flyers' Denver Barkey: a third-round pick in 2023 who played 43 games last season and tallied 17 points--he even got a brief look at his junior position of center when injuries struck the rest of the roster. Barkey's calling card is his effort and motor, and Steiner has elements of that as well.
To succeed as a small player in today's NHL, you either need to be such a prolific scorer that the rest of your game doesn't matter, or you have to have such a high level of compete that you keep winning puck battles and getting to the guts of the ice despite your size. If Steiner hits, he could fit that latter description.
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