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NHL draft lottery odds 2017: Panthers could move up come April 29

While sixteen of the NHL’s club prepare to fight it out in the playoffs starting tonight, the league’s other fifteen franchises not taking part now have an important date on the calendar to look forward to.

The NHL Draft Lottery will take place on Saturday, April 29, in Toronto at 8 p.m. The lottery will determine the order of the first fifteen picks in the draft, which takes place on June 23-24 at the United Center in Chicago.

As with last year’s draft, in addition to the first overall pick by determined by lottery, there will also be drawings for the second and third overall pick.

The NHL’s newest team, the expansion Vegas Golden Knights will be afforded the exact same lottery odds as the team finishing the regular season with the third-worst regular-season record. They will be guaranteed to pick no lower than sixth overall.

The allocation of odds for the lottery draw for the first overall pick is as follows:

Non-Playoff Team (Fewest Pts. to Most) Odds

Colorado Avalanche 18.0%

Vancouver Canucks 12.1%

Vegas Golden Knights 10.3%

Arizona Coyotes 10.3%

New Jersey Devils 8.5%

Buffalo Sabres 7.6%

Detroit Red Wings 6.7%

Dallas Stars 5.8%

Florida Panthers 5.4%

Los Angeles Kings 4.5%

Carolina Hurricanes 3.2%

Winnipeg Jets 2.7%

Philadelphia Flyers 2.2%

Tampa Bay Lightning 1.8%

New York Islanders 0.9%

The odds for the remaining teams will increase on a proportionate basis for the draw for the second pick, based on which club wins the first draw, and again for the third draw, based on which club wins the second.

The Florida Panthers currently hold the ninth overall pick in the draft. If they can win one of the three lotteries and move up, that obviously increases their chances of landing one of the few blue chip prospects (Nico Hischier, Nolan Patrick, Gabriel Vilardi) in what is considered a weak draft class.

Talking Points