The NHL has announced that the 2024 NHL Draft Lottery will be held on May 7, 2024.
DFO’s Frank Seravalli reported this on Friday afternoon:
How the lottery will work
This season, all teams that missed the playoffs will be assigned the following draft lottery odds:
| Rank | Team | Lottery Odds | 1st Overall |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | San Jose | 18.5% | 25.5% |
| 2 | Chicago | 13.5% | 13.5% |
| 3 | Anaheim | 11.5% | 11.5% |
| 4 | Columbus | 9.5% | 9.5% |
| 5 | Montreal | 8.5% | 8.5% |
| 6 | Arizona | 7.5% | 7.5% |
| 7 | Ottawa | 6.5% | 6.5% |
| 8 | Seattle | 6.0% | 6.0% |
| 9 | Calgary | 5.0% | 5.0% |
| 10 | New Jersey | 3.5% | 3.5% |
| 11 | Buffalo | 3.0% | 3.0% |
| 12 | Philadelphia | 2.5% | 0.0% |
| 13 | Minnesota | 2.0% | 0.0% |
| 14 | Pittsburgh | 1.5% | 0.0% |
| 15 | Detroit | 0.5% | 0.0% |
| 16 | St. Louis | 0.5% | 0.0% |
There will be two lotteries held, with two winners announced. An important note is that teams can only move up a maximum of 10 slots in the draft, so any team with the 12th or worse odds do not have a chance to select first overall. As well, teams are only allowed to move up via the draft lottery twice in a five year span, going back to 2022.
No team has hit the two time maximum over this period, so no teams are excluded from advancing in this year’s lottery.
The first winner will move up as many spots as possible, and then the second winner will do the same thing. In the event that a slot is already locked in after the first lottery, the second winner will receive the next available slot.
Draft lottery history since 2022
Here’s how the lottery has broken down since 2022, the year when the current rules matter:
2022
The first overall selection was retained by the Montreal Canadiens who selected Juraj Slafkovsky. They did not move up in the draft.
The second overall selection was won via lottery by the New Jersey Devils who selected Simon Nemec. The Devils advanced from fifth to second in this draft.
2023
The first overall selection was won via lottery by the Chicago Blackhawks who selected Connor Bedard. The Blackhawks advanced from third to first in this draft.
The second overall selection was then retained by the Anaheim Ducks who selected Leo Carlsson. The Ducks were originally in first, but moved back after the Blackhawks won the first lottery.
The Flames heading into the lottery
The Flames enter the lottery with the ninth best odds at 5.0%. Since they are ahead of 12th place in the lottery, they do have a chance to select first overall, and another shot to select second overall if they don’t win the first lottery.
