2023 NHL Draft Lottery: Blackhawks get No. 1 pick (2024)

The Chicago Blackhawks won Monday’s NHL Draft Lottery, locking up the No. 1 pick in the 2023 draft. Anaheim, Columbus, San Jose and Montreal will round out the top five. Here’s what you need to know:

• Chicago entered Monday’s lottery with an 11.5 percent chance at landing the No. 1 pick after finishing the regular season with a 26-49-7 record.
• This is the second time in franchise history the Blackhawks have the No. 1 selection. They previously took Patrick Kane in 2007.
• Connor Bedard, 17, is the No. 1 prospect in The Athletic’s NHL Draft consensus ranking.

The Athletic’s instant analysis:

What this means for Chicago

There’s a lot to unpack with tonight’s result, but it’s hard not to start with the Blackhawks and how well-positioned they now appear to transition out of the Toews-and-Kane with a new face of the franchise. They were the team with the blankest slate. The fewest long-term cap commitments. No real core. The most picks in the next three drafts.

Now the world is their oyster, with an injection of youth that should help to support a true star talent in Bedard. If they can get the timeline right, that blank canvas could be a blessing. — Wheeler

Outlook for teams who missed out on Bedard

When there’s so much attention on one player, as is rightfully the case with Bedard this year, I think it’s easy to lose the forest for the trees if you’re a fan of a team that doesn’t win the It player. On that front, I wouldn’t consider the Ducks falling to two (which still required winning one of the two draws), nor the Blue Jackets falling to three, nor the Sharks or Canadiens staying put, anything to get too broken up about if you’re in their shoes.

Whether it’s Adam Fantilli, Leo Carlsson, Will Smith or maybe even Matvei Michkov, I believe each of those teams will have an opportunity to draft a true frontline player for their franchise moving forward — potential stars, and all-stars, and point per game players or challengers.

Once everyone decompresses, I’d suspect there will be a lot of folks happy with their team’s outcomes in the 2023 draft. — Wheeler

Where the Ducks may go at No. 2

The Ducks are understandably disappointed at how the lottery turned out. Bedard was the big prize and the reward, if you will, for having the worst season in franchise history. An amped-up crowd at an Anaheim restaurant was distinctly let down by the appearance of the Blackhawks logo when deputy commissioner Bill Daly turned over the “1” placard.

But general manager Pat Verbeek turned that around and emphasized that having the No. 2 pick would leave them with a player they covet for a patient rebuild that isn’t named Bedard. It could be Michigan’s Fantilli, the best player in college hockey last season that would be the top choice in other years.

And it might not be if Verbeek and his staff project Carlsson or another elite-level pick this year as someone that could approach Bedard of having the best career out of anyone in this draft. The good thing for Anaheim is that it isn’t desperate to have a franchise center with Trevor Zegras and Mason McTavish already occupying the top two spots in the middle.

Whatever direction they do turn, the Ducks will add a top player to a core that has those two along with Troy Terry and Jamie Drysdale. There are worst positions to be in. —Stephens

Full 2023 NHL Draft Lottery results

1. Chicago Blackhawks
2. Anaheim Ducks
3. Columbus Blue Jackets
4. San Jose Sharks
5. Montreal Canadiens
6. Arizona Coyotes
7. Philadelphia Flyers
8. Washington Capitals
9. Detroit Red Wings
10. St. Louis Blues
11. Vancouver Canucks
12. Ottawa Senators
13. Buffalo Sabres
14. Pittsburgh Penguins
15. Nashville Predators
16. Calgary Flames

Backstory

The Ducks, by virtue of finishing with the league’s worst record, entered Monday’s lottery with the best chance to land the No. 1 pick at 25.5 percent. The Columbus Blue Jackets (13.5 percent) were next, followed by the Chicago Blackhawks (11.5), San Jose Sharks (9.5) and Montreal Canadiens (8.5).

Teams were able to jump 10 spots in the lottery but could not fall more than two spots, meaning the 11 teams that finished at the bottom of the standings had a shot to pick No. 1. Teams that finished 12th to 16th in the standings were unable to move up to the No. 1 pick via the lottery. If one of those five teams had won, they would have moved up 10 spots in the order and Anaheim would have automatically been declared the winner.

Bedard, Fantilli, Michkov and Carlsson are the unanimous top-four prospects in the 2023 draft.

Required reading

• 2023 NHL Draft Lottery takeaways: Connor Bedard’s projection? Who’ll pick Matvei Michkov?
• 2023 NHL Draft top prospects: Bedard No. 1, Smith rises in Corey Pronman’s May ranking
• NHL Mock Draft 2023: Connor Bedard to Blackhawks as we pick for every lottery team
• NHL scouts poll: Connor Bedard will go No. 1, but is there debate at No. 2?
• What Penguins’ NHL Draft Lottery result means for the next GM
• Blue Jackets feel more NHL draft lottery heartbreak, fall to No. 3 — who might they pick?
• The NHL draft lottery explained: How 4 ping-pong balls will set Connor Bedard’s future
• For more, follow The Athletic’s live coverage of the 2023 NHL Draft Lottery

(Photo: Mike Stobe / NHLI via Getty Images)