STEAL: Golden Knights Trade Up, Draft Speedy Scoring Winger

In January, Scott Wheeler of The Athletic ranked the Vegas Golden Knights’ farm system 22nd out of 32 teams. Success always comes at a cost; for winning a Stanley Cup and making the playoffs seven out of eight seasons, this is theirs. One second-round draft pick might not dramatically improve their prospect pool, but the Golden Knights took a big step in the right direction on Saturday. 

The Golden Knights traded the 58th and 122nd overall picks to the Nashville Predators to move up three spots. 

With the 55th pick in the 2025 NHL Entry Draft, the Golden Knights selected Jakob Ihs-Wozniak from Luleå HF of the Swedish Hockey League. 

Ihs-Wozniak could end up being one of the great steals of this Draft. NHL Central Scouting ranked him 8th out of all European skaters; Ryan Kennedy of THN ranked him 23rd overall. Ultimately, in a draft where experts consider most picks interchangeable, he fell to 55th overall. 

Ihs-Wozniak, an 18-year-old 6’2” Australian-born forward, can play both center and right wing. He’s a great playmaker, but he’s most known for his ability to put the puck in the back of the net. He’s a smart player with a nose for the net and the uncanny ability to be in the right place to score. 

Ihs-Wozniak scored 23 goals and provided 34 assists in 34 games with Luleå HF. At the 2025 U18 World Junior Classic, he recorded five goals and seven points in seven games; Sweden ultimately fell to Canada in the gold medal game.

The Golden Knights still have a long way to go on the road to restocking their pipeline. But Ihs-Wozniak is a fantastic place to start, and the winger immediately becomes their second-best skater prospect behind Trevor Connelly.

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