The 2026 NHL Draft combine week has officially kicked off in Buffalo, New York. Teams from around the National Hockey League will have the opportunity to meet these prospects, see how they perform in their fitness testing, and, if they are serious about drafting said player, often take them out to dinner. Vancouver Canucks new General Manager Ryan Johnson is at the combine and is reportedly taking four prospects out for dinner.

According to Donnie & Dhali’s Rick Dhaliwal, the Canucks are planning to take Gavin McKenna, Ivar Stenberg, Chase Reid, and Caleb Malhotra out for ‘dinner dates’ this week in Buffalo.

After losing the NHL Draft lottery and falling to third overall, the Canucks have been linked to names such as Stenberg, Malhotra, and Reid. The presumptive first-overall pick, Gavin McKenna, is believed to be selected first overall by the Toronto Maple Leafs.

However, according to Sheng Peng of San Jose Hockey Now, who is in Buffalo covering the combine, the Canucks are the only team that Gavin McKenna is going to dinner with during combine week.

Dhaliwal replied to the social post regarding the Canucks taking McKenna out for dinner, saying, “Believe they had dinner Monday night.”

McKenna had a historic season in the WHL during his draft-minus-one campaign, scoring 41 goals and 88 assists for 129 points in just 56 regular-season games. He added nine goals and 29 assists for 38 points in 16 playoff games en route to a WHL Championship and a Memorial Cup berth. After a perfect 3-0 round robin stage, McKenna and the Medicine Hat Tigers lost 4-1 in the Memorial Cup final to Canucks prospect Aleksei Medvedev and the London Knights.

The Whitehorse, Yukon, native made the jump to the NCAA for his draft year to play against older, more difficult competition. While he had a slower start in his new environment, once the 18-year-old got acclimated and returned from the World Juniors, McKenna separated himself from the rest of the class. He finished with 15 goals and 36 assists for 51 points in 35 games with the Penn State Nittany Lions.

Depending on how the draft goes ahead of the Canucks, the other three players they are taking for dinner – Stenberg, Malhotra, and Reid – are likely the ones Vancouver will choose from.

Stenberg had a historic season for Frolinda. The left-winger had the fifth-best season as an 18-year-old in the entire SHL, with 11 goals and 22 assists in 43 games. The only players to outscore him as an 18-year-old SHLer are Daniel Sedin, Markus Naslund, Tomas Sandström, and Henrik Sedin.

Malhotra has been one of the biggest risers in the 2026 draft. After jumping from the BCHL to the Brantford Bulldogs of the OHL this season, Malhotra exploded with 29 goals and 55 assists for 84 points in 67 games. The 6’2″ left-shot centreman added 13 goals and 26 points in 15 playoff games before bowing out in the Conference finals to the Barrie Colts.

Reid has emerged as the experts’ top defensive prospect in the class. The 6’2″ right-shot blueliner had 18 goals and 48 points in 45 games for the Soo Greyhounds in the OHL this season. His 1.07 points-per-game finished third among OHL defencemen, trailing only Kashawn Aitcheson and Adam Jiricek, who were both first-round NHL selections.