{"id":54216,"date":"2026-04-18T15:21:45","date_gmt":"2026-04-18T19:21:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/2026-nhl-draft-lottery-scheduled-for-may-5-with-vancouver-leading-odds\/"},"modified":"2026-04-18T15:21:45","modified_gmt":"2026-04-18T19:21:45","slug":"2026-nhl-draft-lottery-scheduled-for-may-5-with-vancouver-leading-odds","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/2026-nhl-draft-lottery-scheduled-for-may-5-with-vancouver-leading-odds\/","title":{"rendered":"2026 NHL Draft Lottery Scheduled for May 5 with Vancouver Leading Odds"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n

The National Hockey League has announced that its 2026 draft lottery will take place on May 5 at the NHL Network facilities in Secaucus, New Jersey.<\/p>

League officials confirmed Saturday that the event will air simultaneously on ESPN, Sportsnet and TVA Sports, though broadcast times remain to be determined.<\/p>

The selection process will start by determining the first overall pick, then proceed to reveal the second selection. Sixteen teams that failed to qualify for the upcoming Stanley Cup playoffs are eligible to participate in the lottery. When a team has traded away its first-round selection, the acquiring franchise receives that lottery position regardless of playoff status.<\/p>

Leading the lottery odds are:<\/p>

1. Vancouver Canucks, 18.5%<\/p>

2. Chicago Blackhawks, 13.5%<\/p>

3. New York Rangers, 11.5%<\/p>

4. Calgary Flames, 9.5%<\/p>

5. Toronto Maple Leafs (conditional trade to Boston Bruins), 8.5%<\/p>

6. Seattle Kraken, 7.5%<\/p>

7. Winnipeg Jets, 6.5%<\/p>

8. Florida Panthers, 6.0%<\/p>

9. San Jose Sharks, 5.0%<\/p>

10. Nashville Predators, 3.5%<\/p>

11. St. Louis Blues, 3.0%<\/p>

12. New Jersey Devils, 2.5%<\/p>

13. New York Islanders, 2.0%<\/p>

14. Columbus Blue Jackets, 1.5%<\/p>

15. St. Louis Blues (from Detroit Red Wings), 0.5%<\/p>

16. Washington Capitals, 0.5%<\/p>

League regulations limit teams from advancing more than 10 positions in the draft order, meaning only the top 11 teams listed can claim the number one selection.<\/p>

Last year’s lottery winner was the New York Islanders, who jumped from the 10th position despite holding only a 3.5% probability. The Islanders used their top pick to select defenseman Matthew Schaefer from Erie in the Ontario Hockey League.<\/p>

The 2026 draft’s opening round is scheduled for June 26 at 7 p.m. Eastern Time. Rounds two through seven will continue the following Saturday morning at 10 a.m. Eastern Time.<\/p>

Two prospects generating buzz for the top overall selection are Penn State left wing Gavin McKenna and left wing Ivar Stenberg from Frolunda in the Swedish Hockey League.<\/p>

According to a March 7, 2025 trade agreement between Toronto and Boston, the Maple Leafs retain their pick if it lands in the top five positions. Should that occur, Toronto would then transfer either their 2027 or 2028 first-round selection to the Bruins.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The National Hockey League will conduct its 2026 draft lottery on May 5 at the NHL Network studios in New Jersey. Vancouver leads with an 18.5% chance of securing the top pick, followed by Chicago at 13.5%.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":54215,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[836],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-54216","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sports"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/news-1776540105368.jpg?fit=450%2C300&ssl=1","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pbtNqq-e6s","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":62369,"url":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/maple-leafs-strike-gold-with-first-overall-pick-in-2026-nhl-draft-lottery\/","url_meta":{"origin":54216,"position":0},"title":"Maple Leafs Strike Gold with First Overall Pick in 2026 NHL Draft Lottery","author":"Admin","date":"May 5, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"The Toronto Maple Leafs secured the top selection in the 2026 NHL draft lottery, marking their first lottery victory since drafting Auston Matthews in 2016. The timing comes just days after the franchise hired John Chayka as general manager and brought back legend Mats Sundin as a hockey operations adviser.","rel":"","context":"In "Sports"","block_context":{"text":"Sports","link":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/category\/sports\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/news-1778028701427.jpg?fit=1000%2C666&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/news-1778028701427.jpg?fit=1000%2C666&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/news-1778028701427.jpg?fit=1000%2C666&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/news-1778028701427.jpg?fit=1000%2C666&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":57679,"url":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/vancouver-goldeneyes-land-top-pwhl-draft-pick-expected-to-select-olympic-star\/","url_meta":{"origin":54216,"position":1},"title":"Vancouver Goldeneyes Land Top PWHL Draft Pick, Expected to Select Olympic Star","author":"Admin","date":"April 26, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"The Vancouver Goldeneyes have earned the first overall selection in the 2026 Professional Women's Hockey League Draft through the league's unique Gold Plan system. Olympic gold medalist Caroline Harvey, a standout defenseman from Wisconsin, is anticipated to be their top choice.","rel":"","context":"In "Sports"","block_context":{"text":"Sports","link":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/category\/sports\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/news-1777224191735.jpg?fit=450%2C300&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":61488,"url":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/oilers-lead-nhl-draft-lottery-success-stories-with-four-top-picks-since-2010\/","url_meta":{"origin":54216,"position":2},"title":"Oilers Lead NHL Draft Lottery Success Stories with Four Top Picks Since 2010","author":"Admin","date":"May 4, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"The NHL draft lottery has created clear winners and losers since starting in 1995, with Edmonton claiming four first-overall selections in just six years. Teams like Chicago, New York Islanders, and Tampa Bay have also benefited significantly, while others like Anaheim and Columbus have struggled despite good odds.","rel":"","context":"In "Sports"","block_context":{"text":"Sports","link":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/category\/sports\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/news-1777901992836.jpg?fit=1000%2C666&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/news-1777901992836.jpg?fit=1000%2C666&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/news-1777901992836.jpg?fit=1000%2C666&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/news-1777901992836.jpg?fit=1000%2C666&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":73408,"url":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/nba-overhauls-draft-lottery-to-combat-team-tanking\/","url_meta":{"origin":54216,"position":3},"title":"NBA Overhauls Draft Lottery to Combat Team Tanking","author":"Admin","date":"May 28, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"The NBA's Board of Governors voted 29-1 to implement major changes to the draft lottery system designed to discourage teams from deliberately losing games. 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