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Islanders Stunningly Win No. 1 Pick in 2025 NHL Draft Lottery
The 2025 NHL Draft Lottery was conducted on Monday, and in an odds-defying turn, the New York Islanders have been granted the No. 1 pick.
The lottery turned out incredibly favorable for the Islanders, who entered the evening with the 10th best odds of picking first. New York had just a 3.5% chance to land the No. 1 pick, but the lottery balls aligned in their favor, and they surged up the draft board into the top spot.
Under the new format of the draft lottery, 14 ping pong balls were placed into a lottery machine. Each lottery team was given a set of four random numbers, 1 through 14, which equates to a total of 1,001 possible combinations. Teams with the worst record were given more sets of numbers to improve their chances of winning the lottery, such as the San Jose Sharks, who finished last in the league standings and had 185 of the 1,001 possible combinations.
Ultimately, the Sharks weren't quite so fortuitous, missing out on the top pick thanks to a lucky draw for the Islanders. San Jose will pick second.
Here's a look at the full NHL Draft lottery results:
NHL Draft Lottery Results
Team | Selection | % Chance to Win Lottery |
|---|---|---|
New York Islanders | 1 | 3.5% |
San Jose Sharks | 2 | 18.5% |
Chicago Blackhawks | 3 | 13.5% |
Utah Hockey Club | 4 | 1.5% |
Nashville Predators | 5 | 11.5% |
Philadelphia Flyers | 6 | 9.5% |
Boston Bruins | 7 | 8.5% |
Seattle Kraken | 8 | 7.5% |
Buffalo Sabres | 9 | 6.5% |
Anaheim Ducks | 10 | 6% |
Pittsburgh Penguins | 11 | 5% |
New York Rangers | 12 | 3% |
Detroit Red Wings | 13 | 2.5% |
Columbus Blue Jackets | 14 | 2% |
Vancouver Canucks | 15 | 0.5% |
Montreal Canadiens (via Calgary Flames) | 16 | 0.5% |
The last time the Islanders picked atop the draft order was in 2009 when they selected John Tavares. They also had the No. 1 pick in 2000, 1973 and '72.
The top prospects heading into June's NHL draft include Michael Misa, James Hagens, Matthew Schaefer and Porter Martone. The Islanders will have their pick of the litter, and will be hoping to land a game-changer with their top pick. It'll be a new general manager making the pick for New York after the team parted ways with Lou Lamoriello after the 2024-25 season.
The 2025 NHL draft is scheduled for June 27, 2025 and will be held at the Peacock Theatre in Los Angeles, Calif.
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Karl Rasmussen is a staff writer for the Breaking and Trending News team for Sports Illustrated. A University of Oregon alum who joined SI in February 2023, his work has appeared on 12up and ClutchPoints. Rasmussen is a loyal Tottenham, Jets, Yankees and Ducks fan.