The Sharks will have the best odds of landing the No. 1 pick, as they'll have a 25.5 percent chance to do so. If San Jose is lucky, it will have the top selection in the draft for the first time in franchise history.
It would be a huge boost for the Sharks to come away with forward Macklin Celebrini, the consensus top player in the 2024 draft class. The Boston University standout will likely go No. 1 regardless of which team owns the selection.
The Blackhawks will have a 13.5 percent chance of getting the No. 1 pick. They could be the first team to pick first in consecutive years since the Oilers owned the top selection three straight years from 2010-12.
The only other team with a greater than 10 percent chance of landing the top pick will be the Anaheim Ducks (11.5 percent). Like the Sharks, the Ducks have never won the lottery and had the opportunity to pick No. 1.
There are still some shakeups that could occur in the NHL standings over the next two days that will affect the lottery odds. However, it's locked in that the Sharks, Blackhawks and Ducks will have the best chances at No. 1, in that order.
For complete pick-by-pick odds at this point, visit Tankathon.com.
Only nine NHL franchises have never earned the No. 1 pick, and that group includes the Golden Knights (who joined the league in 2017) and the Kraken (who joined the league in 2021). The Blue Jackets and Flyers have each used the No. 1 selection, but they acquired the pick via trades.
Celebrini has the potential to become a top-tier player in the league. So whichever NHL team gets the opportunity to draft him, they could be getting a future star.
