Presented by Nationwide Insurance Agent Jeff Vukovich
The ping-pong balls have spoken, and the Chicago Blackhawks will own the No. 2 overall pick in the 2024 NHL Draft.
The Blackhawks landed exactly where the odds said they would, which means they didn't jump up and they didn't fall back. They had the second-highest odds to win the lottery at 13.5% but didn't get the same luck as last year.
"We're really excited about how things ended up tonight," Blackhawks GM Kyle Davidson said. "It wasn't No. 1, but for us, the way we see this draft and what we're able to acquire at the draft in June, No. 2 is a very big win. We're really excited.
"I can't wait to dig in with our amateur staff next week to start the process of getting that board finalized or on the road to being finalized. Glad to know where we're picking finally.
"Maybe people think I'm lying, but No. 2 is a win. We're really excited about that. To not fall and just kind of hold serve and hold place, it's a win. I'll go to dinner tonight and it'll be a celebratory dinner, because we're really excited about it."
Chicago Blackhawks
The San Jose Sharks won the lottery and earned the right to draft prized center Macklin Celebrini. They had the best odds of any team at 25.5%.
While they didn't win the Celebrini sweepstakes, the Blackhawks are going to get a terrific player with the second pick. Forwards Ivan Demidov and Cayden Lindstrom are expected to be in the conversation, along with defensemen Artyom Levshunov and Anton Silayev.
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The 2024 NHL Draft will be held on June 28-29 at The Sphere in Las Vegas. The Blackhawks are currently slated to have nine picks: two 1sts, four 2nds, two 3rds, one 4th, one 5th and one 7th.
Full draft lottery results:
No. 1: San Jose Sharks
No. 2: Chicago Blackhawks
No. 3: Anaheim Ducks
No. 4: Columbus Blue Jackets
No. 5: Montreal Canadiens
No. 6: Utah
No. 7: Ottawa Senators
No. 8: Seattle Kraken
No. 9: Calgary Flames
No. 10: New Jersey Devils
No. 11: Buffalo Sabres
No. 12: Philadelphia Flyers
No. 13: Minnesota Wild
No. 14: Pittsburgh Penguins (to San Jose Sharks)
No. 15: Detroit Red Wings
No. 16: St. Louis Blues
