Ohio State men’s hockey saw four players drafted on Saturday in the 2026 NHL Draft.
Unlike the NFL and NBA Drafts where when a player is drafted they can no longer play at the college level, the NHL allows players to play college hockey and the team that drafts them retains their rights for a certain amount of time.
Then again, using the NBA Draft as an example to describe how college eligibility works might not be the smartest thing to do since we saw some strange rulings over the past year on players
who were already drafted and wanted to return to college.
The Buckeyes finished the 2025-26 season with a 14-21-2 record, missing the NCAA Tournament after losing in the Big Ten Tournament Championship Game. All four of the players drafted on Saturday are incoming freshmen and are still scheduled to come to Columbus in the fall to don the scarlet and gray.
With these four additions to the roster, Ohio State could be in for a bounce-back season in 2026-27.
Ben Wilmott – 92nd overall pick – Las Vegas Golden Knights
The Las Vegas Golden Knights traded forward Pavel Dorofeyev on Friday to the New York Rangers for a number of draft picks. One of those picks Las Vegas received was the 92nd overall pick, which the Golden Knights used on Saturday to select Ben Wilmott, who will turn 20 years old in August.
The Seattle native split last season between the London Knights and Barrie Colts in the Ontario Hockey League. In 37 games with London, Wilmott scored 12 goals and dished out 22 assists in 37 games. Wilmott would then play in 27 regular season games for Barrie, netting 15 goals and 17 assists before adding 11 goals and 11 assists in 20 games in the playoffs.
What stood out about Wilmott during his time in the OHL is the work he does around the net. Wilmott is a bit of a late bloomer and needs to work on his speed and his play away from the puck. If Wilmott is able to build on what he did in the OHL last year, the rest of the Big Ten could be in trouble this season.
Evan Jardine – 121st overall pick – Columbus Blue Jackets
The most notable pick involving an Ohio State player on Saturday was the selection of Evan Jardine by the Columbus Blue Jackets with the 121st overall pick. The Blue Jackets traded down a couple times earlier in the fourth round, accumulating a few more picks before taking Jardine.
While Jardine was already committed to Ohio State, where he is playing his hockey in a few years could just be a few miles down the road from campus.
Jardine has played in the USHL with the Youngstown Phantoms since 2023-24. Last year Jardine not only scored 27 goals and recorded 34 assists, he showed a bit of a mean streak, racking up 70 penalty minutes in 53 games. Much like Wilmott, Jardine has the ability to get under the skin of his opponents.
Jardine has a great mix of skill and grit, which could lead to him being a fan favorite in Columbus for both the Buckeyes and the Blue Jackets.
Tobias Tvrznik – 126th overall pick – Colorado Avalanche
This season we saw Jakub Dobeš take over as the starting goaltender in Montreal, helping the Canadiens reach the Eastern Conference Finals before they were eventually eliminated by the Carolina Hurricanes, who went on to win the Stanley Cup.
Tobias Tvrznik hopes to find success in the NHL in the future after he was drafted by the Colorado Avalanche on Saturday in the fourth round.
The Czechia product will have a few years before he reaches the NHL, as he won’t even turn 19 until the end of July. Before committing to Ohio State, Tvrznik appeared in 39 games for the Wenatchee Wild of the Western Hockey League, posting a 3.10 goals against average and .913 save percentage.
While the goals against average is a little high, Tvrznik’s save percentage is impressive. With a pretty crowded pipeline at goalie, Tvrznik can afford to spend some time in Columbus to develop.
Will Tomko – 204th overall pick – Seattle Kraken
The final future Buckeye selected on Saturday was Will Tomko, who was drafted by the Seattle Kraken in the seventh round with the 204th overall pick.
There are a lot of similarities between Tomko and Evan Jardine, who was taken in the fourth round by Columbus. Tomko and Jardine are similar in size, standing at six-feet tall and weighing about 185 pounds.
In 59 games with the Sioux City Musketeers, Tomko scored 24 goals and handed out 36 assists. Tomko also spent a lot time in the penalty box, racking up 115 minutes in the sin bin last season. If his play with Sioux City is any indication of what he brings to the table, expect to see Tomko all over the ice during his time as a Buckeye.
