The NHL announced Friday that the 2024 NHL Draft Lottery will be held on May 7, to determine the order of the first 16 picks in this year’s selection of players. By virtue of finishing last in the NHL this season, the San Jose Sharks have the best odds at landing the No. 1 overall pick, which is expected to be Macklin Celebrini of Boston University.
The 17-year-old center from Vancouver is the consensus choice to be selected first this year. Celebrini put up impressive numbers in his first season at BU, with 64 points (32G-32A) in 38 games, and won the Hobey Baker Award, given annually to the best player in college hockey.
On the national stage, Celebrini led Canada with four goals and eight pints in five games at the 2024 IIHF World Junior Championship.
Though he hasn’t generated quite the frenzy that 2023 top pick Connor Bedard did before being selected by the Chicago Blackhawks, there are many hockey experts that compare Celebrini favorably with Bedard.
Related: 2024 NHL Mock Draft 1.0
2024 NHL Draft Lottery odds for all 16 teams taking part
The sixteen teams that failed to qualify for the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs will take part in the May 7 lottery. Those who finished lower in the standings have the best chance to win the lottery.
2024 NHL Draft Lottery odds
San Jose Sharks – 18.5 %
Chicago Blackhawks – 13.5%
Anaheim Ducks – 11.5%
Columbus Blue Jackets – 9.5%
Montreal Canadiens – 8.5%
Utah – 7.5%
Ottawa Senators – 6.5%
Seattle Kraken – 6.0%
Calgary Flames – 5.0%
New Jersey Devils – 3.5%
Buffalo Sabres – 3.0%
Philadelphia Flyers – 2.5%
Minnesota Wild – 2.0%
Pittsburgh Penguins – 1.5%
Detroit Red Wings – 0.5%
St. Louis Blues – 0.5%
Of the three teams with the best chance of picking No. 1 overall, there are certainly some interesting storylines. The Sharks are deep in a rebuild and need another young star to go with Will Smith, the Boston College standout they selected fourth overall in 2023.
The Blackhawks could become the team to beat once again, as winning the lottery would pair Celebrini with Bedard, who looks like he will win the Calder Trophy this season as NHL rookie of the year.
The Anaheim Ducks are loaded with young talent like Trevor Zegras, Leo Carlsson, and Troy Terry. Adding Celebrini to the mix could make them a dangerous team for years to come. The Ducks had the best odds to win the draft lottery last season, but the Blackhawks moved up from the third position and the Ducks dropped to No. 2, where they selected Carlsson.
The team with the best odds has retained the No. 1 pick two of the past three years (Canadiens in 2022, Sabres in 2021) and three of the past six (Sabres, 2018).