Ottawa Senators General Manager Steve Staios sent the No. 9 overall pick in the 2026 NHL Draft—which Ottawa acquired just two days ago from the Florida Panthers in the Brady Tkachuk blockbuster—to San Jose. In return, Ottawa brings in William Eklund, highly touted forward prospect Kasper Halttunen, and the rights to collegiate center Brandon Svoboda.
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— San Jose Sharks (@SanJoseSharks) June 23, 2026
We’ve acquired the 9th overall selection from the Senators in exchange for forwards William Eklund, Kasper Halttunen, and Brandon Svoboda.
Eklund, originally selected seventh overall by the Sharks in 2021, arrives in the nation's capital fresh off his third full NHL season, where he posted 53 points (15 goals, 38 assists) in 78 games. Signed through the 2028-29 season at a manageable $5.6 million AAV, the Stockholm native provides the Senators with cost certainty and top-six skill for the foreseeable future.
Through 252 career games over parts of five NHL seasons with the Sharks, Eklund has collected 50 goals and 163 points. The Stockholm product has yet to appear in a Stanley Cup Playoff game during his career to date.
Halttunen, 21, spent the 2025-26 season with the AHL’s San Jose Barracuda, amassing 16 goals and 35 points in 69 games with the club. A two-time OHL champion with the London Knights, Halttunen is a 6’3″ right wing whom San Jose drafted with a second-round pick (No. 36 overall) in 2023. While the 21-year-old Svoboda offers further depth down the middle after two solid seasons at Boston University, he scored six goals and 15 points in 35 games during the 2025-26 season. The Sharks originally selected the Pittsburgh product in the third round (No. 71 overall) in 2023.