The 2020 NHL Draft Lottery, which was held on Friday night, has been criticized since the idea was presented to the public. Mostly because half of the teams which will eventually participate in the lottery still need to lose in the qualifying round and were simply replaced with so-called placeholders teams. And of course, because this is the NHL, one of these teams has taken the first spot.
The team, which was originally determined as the Team E, had just a 2.5% chance of winning the lottery and made the biggest jump in history of draft lotteries to secure a first overall pick. In a normal lottery, this is the equivalent of the 12th place team winning. It’s also the first time in history when the teams with the seven worst records in the regular season have been left without a first overall pick.
The 2020 #NHLDraft order… so far.
One of the 8 teams that lose in the @NHL‘s play-in round will select first overall in the 2020 #NHLDraft. #NHLonSN pic.twitter.com/03vcVCYkwh
— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) June 27, 2020
The second part of the Draft Lottery will be held between the qualifying round and the first round of playoffs. All eight teams eligible for Phase 2 of the lottery will have an equal 12.5% chance of winning.
If the 2019-20 Return to Play does not occur for any reason, the teams with the 8th to 15th lowest points percentage at the pause would equal shots (12.5 per cent) at getting the No. 1 overall pick. Keep in mind, though, not all those teams may not own their first-round pick.
— Bob McKenzie (@TSNBobMcKenzie) June 27, 2020
Now the first overall pick, which is very likely to be Alexis Lafreniere, will be decided between eight teams eliminated in the play-in round. For example, it can be the Edmonton Oilers who have won it four times during the last decade or the Arizona Coyotes, the current team of Taylor Hall, whose team has owned the first overall pick six times over the same timespan. The Athletic’s Dom Luszczyszyn summarized odds for teams left in the competition. This accounts for their chances of losing in the play-in round as well as the 12.5% chance in the actual lottery.
First overall pick odds (lmao) pic.twitter.com/ucUsKW8z4Z
— dom luszczyszyn (@domluszczyszyn) June 27, 2020
After recording one of the worst seasons in modern history of the NHL, the Detroit Red Wings have been left without any of the top three picks. The team’s general manager Steve Yzerman said that he’s not surprised, however not going to “feel sorry for ourselves“.
Steve Yzerman: “We’re going to get a great prospect, and how good of a player he becomes, time will tell. So we can sit here today and feel sorry for ourselves if we want, it doesn’t matter. The system is what it is, and it’s the same for all the teams …maybe we will get lucky.”
— Max Bultman (@m_bultman) June 27, 2020
The Ottawa Senators, which owned the San Jose Sharks’ pick besides their own, ended up with the No. 3 and No. 5 picks.
#Sens GM Pierre Dorion spoke with media on Zoom just after the lottery (sorry for delay).
Says the organization is “really excited” about picks 3 and 5***
“We’re going to draft two players that we know are going to be impactful players for the Senators for many years to come.”
— Hailey Salvian (@hailey_salvian) June 27, 2020
Pierre Dorion also didn’t rule out a possibility of trading one of their picks. However, the chances are very small.
Pierre Dorion says he will listen to other GM’s on the No. 3 and No. 5 picks but he’s 99.9% sure he’ll keep the picks in a strong draft. #Sens
— Bruce Garrioch (@SunGarrioch) June 27, 2020
Other News and Notes
Tampa Bay Lightning beat writer Joe Smith disclosed what happens with players who tested positive for COVID-19.
But sources told The Athletic’s Mike Russo the NHL and NHLPA recently agreed to a test-based substitute for the 14-day quarantine. That means players can come out of quarantine as soon as the eighth day as long as four consecutive tests spaced 48 hours apart come back negative, they have no symptoms and the team’s medical personnel agree that ending the quarantine poses no risk of infecting other players.
According to ESPN’s Greg Wyshynski, the league and players are closing in on a new collective bargaining agreement
The National Hockey League Players’ Association is expected to vote on both a new CBA and the return-to-play protocols that would restart the 2019-20 season this summer, and that would require a vote involving all its members. That hadn’t happened as of Friday night. Among the return-to-play issues were the approval of safety protocols and the two “hub” cities that will host 24 teams in the Stanley Cup playoffs.
After firing almost the half of their staff, the Buffalo Sabres announced some replacements
The Buffalo Sabres today announced the team has named Jeremiah Crowe its director of scouting. In addition, director of analytics Jason Nightingale has added the title of assistant director of scouting. https://t.co/bi0nnKEijA
— Sabres PR (@SabresPR) June 26, 2020
Mikhail Vorobyev has become another Russian AHLer to sign a deal with a KHL team.
After failing to stand out in North America, Mikhail Vorobyev is reportedly headed back to Russia. https://t.co/kv7WqjcOFQ
— Broad Street Hockey (@BroadStHockey) June 26, 2020
The Philadelphia Flyers mascot Gritty supported the LBGTQ movement in a short video on their Twitter page during Pride month.
Love always wins. pic.twitter.com/wweuTdDZZF
— Gritty (@GrittyNHL) June 26, 2020
