Kings select Des Moines forward Blake Zielinski 80th overall in NHL Draft

Des Moines forward Blake Zielinski was taken 80th overall by the Los Angeles Kings in the third round of the 2026 NHL Draft in Buffalo, a selection that put another Buccaneers skater inside the top 100 and underlined the club’s place on the NHL development map. The Kings used a third-round pick they had gained after trading down, and Zielinski was one of the first USHL players off the board once that round opened.

Zielinski arrived at draft day after a season that gave scouts a clear set of numbers to weigh. He finished the 2025-26 USHL campaign with 55 points in 53 games, scoring 25 goals and adding 30 assists for 1.04 points per game in his second league season. The USHL named him to the All-USHL Third Team, and in April he won the league’s 2026 Gaudreau Award, the honor reserved for the player who best reflects excellence in hockey, spirit of the game, and care and responsibility. Head coach and president of hockey operations Derek Damon said Zielinski showed the hard work, sacrifice and dedication needed to reach the draft, traits the Buccaneers saw every day in Des Moines.

The rest of Zielinski’s resume helped explain why NHL Central Scouting kept moving him up during the season. He entered the year on the B-rated portion of Central Scouting’s preliminary watch list, then rose to 56th in the midterm rankings in January. USA Hockey lists him as a 6-foot, 188-pound forward from Berlin, N.J., born March 5, 2008, and says he led Team USA in points at the 2025 Hlinka Gretzky Cup with nine. He also won gold with Team USA at both the Hlinka Gretzky Cup and the World Junior A Challenge, then is set to take the next step at Providence College in the fall.

For Des Moines, the pick fit the franchise’s larger calling card. The Buccaneers were founded in 1980, have won four Clark Cups and four Anderson Cups, and count 54 NHL draft picks among their alumni, including Kyle Okposo, Alex Chiasson, Trevor Lewis, Davis Drewiske and Erik Cole. With 44 USHL players selected in the 2026 NHL Draft, Zielinski’s name became one more sign that the league and the Buccaneers still know how to produce forwards ready for the next level.