The 2024 NHL draft lottery was held Tuesday night, though it came without many surprises. In fact, this year's draft is the first since 2010 in which the picks went unchanged through the lottery process, according to Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet.
As such, it'll be the San Jose Sharks on the clock first. After a rough season that saw the Sharks finish at the bottom of the league with a record of 19–54–5, they'll have the chance to pick atop this year's draft, where it's widely anticipated that they'll select Boston University standout Macklin Celebrini.
Celebrini, 17, won't turn 18 until just a couple of weeks before the draft in June. This past year at BU, he became the youngest player ever to win the Hoby Baker Award, which recognizes college hockey's top talent. He racked up 64 points—32 goals and 32 assists—across 38 games, and now could be headed to San Jose as the franchise looks to add a game-changing talent to help facilitate the rebuild.
Rounding out the top five after the Sharks in the 2024 draft will be the Chicago Blackhawks, Anaheim Ducks, Columbus Blue Jackets and Montreal Canadiens. The upstart Utah franchise is poised to pick sixth.
