The 2026 NHL draft may have a left winger at the top, but there's a bunch of excellent prospects on defense, as well. 

Two of those top blueliners are Keaton Verhoeff and Carson Carels. Verhoeff played this past season at the University of North Dakota, and next year, Carels will join him in Grand Forks.

Even better for the Fighting Hawks? The youngsters already know each other from playing together on Canadian national teams.

"I'm pumped – it's going to be awesome," Verhoeff said. "Playing with him and being around him, we've become pretty close. With our team next year, we have a great chance to win a national championship. We came to (Frozen Four host city) Vegas this year and fell short, and every guy was left with a sour taste. Even the new guys coming in have one goal. To play with guys you know and enjoy spending time with brings things to another level, too."

With Carels shooting left and Verhoeff a righty, the two could even play as a pair, just like they did at the 2026 world juniors for bronze-medal Canada. They're both eligible to return to the tournament next season, as well.

"He's a really creative guy," Carels said. "And we complement each other: my two-way game and his offensive dimension are really good – and he's been working on his defense. We can become a really good pair, especially if we play together all year at North Dakota, we'll go into the world juniors feeling really good."

With Sam Dickinson sticking in the NHL (and Matthew Schaefer, though that one was a little more obvious), Canada's blueline wasn't as solid as it could have been at the world juniors, but the growth of Verhoeff and Carels would give the 2027 edition an excellent top pair after they played depth minutes last time.

Of course, North Dakota fans are less concerned with Canada's gold medal hopes and more about whether the two can help the Fighting Hawks get their own championship in the NCAA.

Carels, who played in the WHL for Prince George this past season, is part of an exciting class of CHL superstars joining the college ranks for 2026-27 – a group that includes fellow top draft prospect D-men Chase Reid (Michigan State) and Daxon Rudolph (Denver).

The Manitoba native had a number of reasons for choosing North Dakota, and Verhoeff helped.

"Yeah, there was quite a bit of texting," Carels said. "We became great buddies after playing all those Team Canada events together. I wanted to go there, growing up near that area, heard about it a lot, and once I went down and saw how happy he was and meeting the coaches, it made my decision really easy."

Verhoeff, who had a robust 20 points in 36 games as a freshman at North Dakota, is understandably happy to have Carels coming to town as a potential 'D' partner. 

"We work well together," Verhoeff said. "He can skate, he can defend, he can create on the offensive side, too. Being around him is fun. He's the type of player that really makes everyone around him better."

Verhoeff's freshman season at North Dakota was a great learning experience, and Carels could be in for a similar education. 

Sure, the points Verhoeff accrued were nice, but he also learned how fast his decisions had to be made in his own zone, since the college game features older, faster, stronger opponents than he was used to when he played for WHL Victoria the season prior.

For Carels, he's also keeping an eye out for those NCAA waterbugs (let's not forget how 5-foot-10 Ethan Wyttenbach dominated for Quinnipiac this past season) and the time he'll be able to spend in the North Dakota gym.

"It'll get me bigger, faster and stronger," he said. "Playing against those small guys can help my stick and the details of my game. I can learn about the game more, not playing as much but also being in the gym will help a lot."

Once the first round of the draft is completed, Verhoeff and Carels will likely have different NHL teams to call their own. But they're going to be teammates with North Dakota, and that's going to be a lot of talent – and potentially a pairing – in Grand Forks next season.

Top photo by Allison Kennedy Davies

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