NHL Draft lottery results: Maple Leafs stun by winning top pick, right to select Gavin McKenna | Sporting News
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Sometimes, a draft lottery is the highlight of the season. For the Toronto Maple Leafs, the 2026 installment certainly was.
They had the fifth-highest odds to win the lottery (8.5%), but they walked away from Tuesday’s lottery show with the draft right to select presumed No. 1 pick Gavin McKenna of Penn State … or whomever they choose.
The San Jose Sharks also walked away with a smile on their franchise’s face. They had a 5% chance to move up in the lottery, and they went on to win the second draw of the night and will pick second overall on June 26.
Rounding out June’s draft in the top five will be the Vancouver Canucks, who had the highest odds of winning the lottery, the Chicago Blackhawks, who were second-most likely to win, and the New York Rangers, who had the third-highest chance to win the drawing.
For the second consecutive year in league history, the live drawing of the lottery was televised. The event will aired ESPN in the United States and on Sportsnet or TVA Sports for Canadian viewers. Despite the show being aired live, fans are always quick to jump on the conspiracy that the lottery is rigged. Toronto winning certainly didn’t help the NHL’s stance to prove it wrong, despite never cutting away from the ping pong balls flying around their machine.
The Sporting News tracked the result of the 2026 NHL Draft Lottery. Here is a recap with the complete order for picks 1-16.
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NHL Draft lottery results 2026
| Pick | Team |
| No. 1 | Toronto Maple Leafs |
| No. 2 | San Jose Sharks |
| No. 3 | Vancouver Canucks |
| No. 4 | Chicago Blackhawks |
| No. 5 | New York Rangers |
| No. 6 | Calgary Flames |
| No. 7 | Seattle Kraken |
| No. 8 | Winnipeg Jets |
| No. 9 | Florida Panthers |
| No. 10 | Nashville Predators |
| No. 11 | St. Louis Blues |
| No. 12 | New Jersey Devils |
| No. 13 | New York Islanders |
| No. 14 | Columbus Blue Jackets |
| No. 15 | St. Louis Blues (via DET) |
| No. 16 | Washington Capitals |
How does the NHL Draft lottery work?
During the NHL Draft lottery, a machine is equipped with 14 ping pong balls that can land in 1,001 different outcomes. Each team will receive a value of four-digit combinations that translate to its odds of winning the lottery multiplied by 10.
The team with the best odds has 185 possible four-digit combinations, or an 18.5% chance, to win the lottery. There will also be one four-digit combination that belongs to no team and is deleted from the lottery.
The NHL teams that didn’t make the playoffs also have the potential to move up in the lottery. In 2021, a rule was enacted to have only the 11 worst teams select first. Teams ranked 12-16 can only jump up a maximum of 10 spots in the order. Therefore, if a team ranked 12-16 wins the lottery, then they will select 2-6.
After the first overall pick’s lottery, there will then be another draw for the second overall pick. Teams 13-16 can only jump up to picks 3-6, so if any of those teams win, the team with the next best odds will select second. Once the 16 lottery spots are all occupied, the teams will fill the rest of the open draft spots based on their final standings. Due to the draft lottery only applying to the first round, rounds 2-7 will be ordered based on reverse standings order.
For the second year in a row, the league will show the lottery live on air. Previously, the lottery could not be viewed by the public live.
One caveat in the NHL draft lottery process is that no team can have the No. 1 pick more than twice in a five-year span. Therefore, if the Islanders, Sharks, or Blackhawks win the lottery, they will be ineligible to pick first next year.
MORE: What are the complete rules for the NHL draft lottery?
NHL Draft lottery odds to win No. 1 pick
Each team’s odds in the 2026 draft lottery represent that team’s chances of moving up in the lottery. However, only the teams with the 11 lowest-point total teams in the NHL can earn the No. 1 overall pick, as teams can only rise 10 spots in the lottery. The teams with the 12th-16th best odds can only pick as high as 2-6 if they “win” the lottery.
The NHL lottery odds are equipped with a reverse-standings order. On the other end, the best team to miss the playoffs this year will have the lowest odds to move up in the lottery.
This year, the Vancouver Canucks will have an 18.5% chance of winning the lottery. Following them will be the Blackhawks (13.5%) and the New York Rangers (11.5%). Here is how the odds look for the 12 teams.
| Team | Odds |
| Vancouver Canucks | 18.5% |
| Chicago Blackhawks | 13.5% |
| New York Rangers | 11.5% |
| Calgary Flames | 9.5% |
| Toronto Maple Leafs | 8.5% |
| Seattle Kraken | 7.5% |
| Winnipeg Jets | 6.5% |
| Florida Panthers | 6.0% |
| San Jose Sharks | 5.0% |
| Nashville Predators | 3.5% |
| St. Louis Blues | 3.0% |
| New Jersey Devils | 2.5% |
| New York Islanders | 2.0% |
| Columbus Blue Jackets | 1.5% |
| St. Louis Blues (via DET) | 0.5% |
| Washington Capitals | 0.5% |
When is the NHL Draft lottery 2026?
- Date: Tuesday, May 5
- Time: 7 p.m. ET, 4 p.m. PT
This year’s draft lottery will occur on Tuesday at 7:00 p.m. ET on ESPN before the Wild and Avalanche play Game 2 of their second-round series.
This content is sourced from www.sportingnews.com and is shared for informational purposes only.
