The NHL draft lottery for 2025 involves a pooled selection of teams that did not qualify for the playoffs. Instead of directly linking the first pick to the worst record, a lottery system provides opportunities for multiple teams to secure top prospects. This reduces intentional losing and promotes competitiveness within the league. The lottery mechanism includes a set number of combinations assigned to non-playoff teams, with more assigned to teams with worse records, increasing their chances at the top spot. The lottery itself will be broadcast on ESPN, emphasizing fan engagement and anticipation.
In theory, this also reduces any sense that certain teams are not doing their best to ice a competitive lineup, since there is no guarantee of getting that No. 1 pick by losing the most games.
The worse a team's record, the more combinations they are assigned; so the team with the worst record this past season, the San Jose Sharks, gets 185, representing an 18.5% chance of winning the first lottery draw.
A lottery provides multiple non-playoff teams with the chance at getting the first overall pick -- an important consideration given the premium value of early first-round picks.
The first draw of ping pong balls determines the No. 1 pick, based on the assigned combinations.
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