Tonight is the 2021 NHL Draft Lottery. The Columbus Blue Jackets enter the lottery with the 5th best odds for the top overall pick.
The Buffalo Sabres have the best odds for the first overall pick at 16.6%. The newly christened Seattle Kraken will enter the lottery with the third overall best odds, the same as the Vegas Golden Knights did. The Arizona Coyotes, with just a 3.1% chance at the first pick, have forfeited their pick due to combine testing violations, and a Coyotes win will result in a re-draw.
For those unfamiliar or who need a refresher, only two teams can potentially move up, a change from the three spots up for grabs of years past. The lowest the Columbus Blue Jackets could fall in this draft is seventh overall. They are looking to win the first overall pick for the first time in franchise history.
Stay tuned to this space for updates and complete lottery results. The lottery will be held tonight at 7:00 EST on NBCSN.
Here are the details, per the NHL’s official release:
The 2021 NHL Draft Lottery, used to determine the order of selection for picks 1-16 in the first round of the 2021 NHL Draft, will be conducted at NHL Network’s Secaucus, N.J., studio tonight – Wednesday, June 2 – at 7 p.m. ET.
The event will be broadcast live on NBCSN and NHL Network in the U.S. as well as Sportsnet and TVA Sports in Canada.
UPDATE: COLUMBUS DOES NOT MOVE UP, WILL PICK FIFTH OVERALL
OFFICIAL: The #CBJ hold the 5th pick in the 2021 #NHLDraft! pic.twitter.com/XZ2QEBU8zD
— Columbus Blue Jackets (@BlueJacketsNHL) June 2, 2021