Winnipeg Jets ‘happy with our haul’ after five players selected in NHL entry draft

Sascha Boumedienne, left, stands with NHL commissioner Gary Bettman after being drafted by the Winnipeg Jets during the NHL hockey draft Friday, June 27, 2025, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)

The Winnipeg Jets have selected five players during the NHL entry draft.

“We were happy with our haul,” said Mark Hillier, Winnipeg Jets director of amateur scouting. “We’ve got five players that can all skate and have some skill.”

The entry draft resulted in the Jets selecting defenceman Sascha Boumedienne in the first round, forward Owen Martin in the third round, forward Viktor Klingsell in the fifth round, defenceman Edison Engle in the sixth round and forward Jacob Cloutier in the seventh round.

The draft was held on Friday and Saturday in Los Angeles, U.S., with Boumedienne being the only player selected by the Jets on the first day. He was the 28th overall pick in the first round.

“Boumedienne is a really, really good skater, puck-moving defenceman who gets back to pucks quickly, beats pressure and moves the puck,” said Hillier.

The 6’2” defender born in Sweden played with Boston University in the National Collegiate Athletic Association last season. He was named the best defenceman at the 2025 IIHF World U18 Championship where he secured a silver medal for Team Sweden.

Meanwhile, Martin was the third Manitoban to be selected by the Winnipeg Jets since they returned in 2011, per Scott Brown, senior director of hockey communications with the team. He was the 92nd overall selection.

The 6-foot 18-year-old from Oakbank played with the Spokane Chiefs for the last two seasons in the Western Hockey League.

“He’s an intriguing player for us,” said Hillier. “He has pretty good size. He is a good skater, who has some skill, but has a good, smart two-way game … He had a really strong playoff this season. We expect those offensive numbers to even pop more next year.”

Klingsell, the 156th overall pick hailing from Sweden, played 43 games with Skelleftea AIK in the J20 Nationell and skated in three games with Skelleftea in the Swedish Hockey League last season.

The 5’10” 18-year-old played for Sweden at the 2025 IIHF World U18 Championship.

“We really liked him all year long,” said Hillier. “He can really skate (and) has really good speed. He played in all the international tournaments this year for the under-18 team. He plays in a good program at Skelleftea and has good offensive upside, he has grit to his game, he’s a dog on a bone on pucks.”

Engle was the 188th overall pick coming from Arlington Heights, Illinois at 6’2”.

He previously split time between the Des Moines Buccaneers and Dubuque Fighting Saints in the United States Hockey League last season.

A media release from the Jets indicates that he recently committed to the Brantford Bulldogs in the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) for the upcoming season, with a commitment to Ohio State University set to start in 2026-27.

“Using our analytics a little bit too, he’s one of the best skaters that we thought was in the draft,” said Hillier. “It’s a good opportunity for us to take him late. We think there’s more offensive ability to come from him in the future … He really gets back to pucks quickly.”

“We think if he can add a little to his offensive game in the future, we got a pretty good value pick there,” he added.

Cloutier, the 220th overall selection, played 67 games this past season with the Saginaw Spirit in the OHL. Born in Ottawa, Ont., he was named to OHL’s second all-rookie team.

Hiller said he has “lots of speed in his game, lots of quickness and lots of skill.”

“He’s five foot 10, but he plays bigger than his size, so we like that pick there too.”