One of the more notable young stars in the NHL is leaving Orange County.
On Friday night at the 2026 NHL Draft, the St. Louis Blues acquired forward Mason McTavish from the Anaheim Ducks. In exchange, the Ducks receive two first-round picks in this year’s draft.
McTavish’s name has been part of trade talks since the team was eliminated from the Stanley Cup Playoffs. While he is still an exceptional talent, he fell out of favor with the organization that took him third overall in the 2021 NHL Draft.
The Czechia-born center has posted 40 points in each of the past four seasons. After setting a career-high 52 points during the 2024-25 campaign, McTavish took a slight step back this past year, scoring 17 goals and 24 assists for 41 points in 75 games. He went on to post a goal and six points in 10 games in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, as Anaheim advanced to the second round before being eliminated by the eventual Western Conference champion Vegas Golden Knights.
McTavish is heading into the second season of his six-year contract extension that he signed with the Ducks in September 2025. The deal carries a cap hit of $7 million through the 2030-31 campaign.
In 304 regular-season games in the NHL, McTavish has scored 77 goals and 104 assists for 181 points.
The picks are the No. 15 and No. 29 picks in the draft. The No. 15 spot originally belonged to the Detroit Red Wings, but was moved to the Blues as part of the Justin Faulk trade prior to the trade deadline this past March. The No. 29 pick was the Colorado Avalanche‘s, but it was moved to both the New York Islanders and Blues before going to Anaheim.
The Ducks used the No. 15 pick to select forward Nikita Klepov from the Saginaw Spirit.
