The Montreal Canadiens selected defenseman Brayden Klimpke with the 117th overall pick in the fourth round of the 2026 NHL Entry Draft on June 27.
Montreal originally held the 103rd overall pick but traded it to the Los Angeles Kings for the 113th and 190th selections.
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The Canadiens then swapped the 113th pick with the Vegas Golden Knights for the 117th and 223rd selections.
Klimpke, a 6-foot-0, 174-pound left-shooting defenseman, recorded four goals and 42 assists in 68 games as an alternate captain for the Saskatoon Blades of the WHL during the 2025-26 season.
The 17-year-old Calgary native is committed to the University of North Dakota in the NCAA, representing a long-term development project for the Canadiens organization.
Klimpke ranked 74th among North American skaters by NHL Central Scouting, showing significant development from his rookie 2024-25 season where he recorded 26 points in 56 games for Saskatoon.
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Scouting Reports Highlight Two-Way Game
Blades captain Tyler Parr praised Klimpke's growth. "He's been super impressive.
He was unbelievable; he was carrying the puck, but he was also defending really hard," Parr said.
Collin Wilcox of Dobber Prospects described Klimpke as "an intelligent, smooth-skating defenseman with a refined two-way game." Wilcox noted his calmness with the puck and effective transition defense.
Neutral Zone scouting reports highlighted his ability to navigate defensive pressure and accurately distribute the puck during transition sequences.
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The selection follows Montreal's earlier draft moves, which included taking Gleb Pugachyov 26th overall, Timofei Runtso 61st overall, and Cooper Cleaves 93rd overall.
