Which NHL team will land top prospect Connor Bedard?
The GIST: As the chase for Lord Stanley continues, non-playoff teams have their eyes on a potential franchise-altering knight in shining armor.
Playoff update: The Florida Panthers are officially in their villain era. After eliminating the regular-season champ Boston Bruins in the first round, the wild card team finds themselves up 3-0 over the Toronto Maple Leafs — who were favored to win the Cup heading into the second round — after last night’s big 3–2 overtime win. That wasn’t on our bingo card.
- Elsewhere, the NJ Devils secured their first win of the series with yesterday’s 8–4 Game 3 dub over the Carolina Hurricanes. And in the Western Conference, the Seattle Kraken jumped out to a 2-1 series lead over the Dallas Stars last night.
- Things are equally wild in the Edmonton Oilers vs. Vegas Golden Knights series. Knotted at a game apiece, someone will skate their way to an edge tonight at 8:30 p.m. ET.
Tonight’s draft lottery: But first, four ping-pong balls will determine the fate of one of the league’s best-ever prospects. The NHL draft lottery takes place at 8 p.m. ET, where the 11 eligible teams who missed the playoffs will be hoping to land the No. 1 pick in next month’s draft — aka 17-year-old Connor Bedard, who has drawn comparisons to Wayne Gretzky.
- The team with the worst regular-season record — this season, that’s the Anaheim Ducks — has the best chance of landing the No. 1 selection, with the rest following in inverse order of the final standings. May the odds be ever in their favor.
