The Athletic's Corey Pronman recently released his latest 2026 NHL Mock Draft, where he made picks for the first round. When it came to the Buffalo Sabres, Pronman predicted that they would end up selecting defenseman William Hakansson.
The idea of Hakansson joining the Sabres' prospect pool is a fascinating one. The first thing that stands out about him is that he is a big, 6-foot-4 left-shot defenseman. With this, he would give the Sabres another defenseman with size in their prospect pool, which would not be a bad thing in the slightest.
Hakansson has the potential to become a solid defensive defenseman in the NHL, so it would be understandable if the Sabres considered selecting him at this year's draft. The potential for him to emerge as a top-four shutdown defenseman is there.
Hakansson played in 22 games this season with Lulea HF of the SHL, where he recorded two assists and a plus-1 rating. He also recorded two goals and four points in 16 games with Almtuna IS in HockeyAllsvenskan.
Ultimately, with the Sabres needing more defensive depth, it would make sense if they picked Hakansson if he is still available once they are on the clock. It will be interesting to see if they do just that.
