NHL Sets Draft Lottery Scheduled for May 5

Bedard has recorded 128 points in 150 NHL games over two seasons, including a 61-point campaign in his freshman season that led to the 2024 Calder Trophy as the NHL’s best rookie. 

Nashville Predators

After a summer offseason splash that included high-priced contracts for Steven Stamkos and Jonathan Marchessault, the Nashville Predators stumbled out of the starting gates with disastrous results. After a 47-win campaign in 2023-24, the Predators limped to a 30-44-8 record in 2024-25, the third-worst mark in the league.

Nashville has an 11.5% chance of winning the lottery selection process. As part of their expansion in 1998, the Predators’ highest draft selection to date was second overall. David Legwand, the Predators’ top choice in the 1998 NHL Draft, played 956 games for Nashville over 15 seasons. 

Philadelphia Flyers

Despite Matvei Michkov’s electric rookie season, the Philadelphia Flyers finished in the basement of the Eastern Conference with a 33-39-10 record. It’s been a slow and steady rebuild for Philadelphia, which holds an astounding eight picks inside the top three rounds in 2025. 

The Flyers hold a 9.5% chance to jump above San Jose, Chicago, and Nashville on May 5. Philadelphia has only once held the top selection in the NHL Draft. In 1975, the Flyers completed a trade with the Washington Capitals to obtain the top pick and selected Mel Bridgeman. The 6-foot center played half of his 14-year career in Philly, where he recorded 324 points in 462 games for the Flyers. 

Boston Bruins

After trading their locker room leader, Brad Marchand, to the Florida Panthers at the 2025 NHL Trade Deadline, the Boston Bruins tumbled down the standings to a 33-39-10 record. Due to losing a tie-breaker with the Flyers, the Bruins have the fifth-best odds to pick first at 8.5%.

It’s been nearly 15 years since the Bruins were able to select this high in the NHL Draft. In 2010, Boston landed the second overall pick before choosing Tyler Seguin. The center spent three seasons in Boston before a trade during the 2013 offseason sent him to the Dallas Stars. Seguin has spent 12 seasons in Dallas since the trade, amassing 727 points in 786 games for the Stars.

The Bruins have selected first overall three times in their storied history: Barry Gibbs (1966), Gord Kluzak (1982), and Joe Thornton (1997). 

Date & Broadcast Details 

The 2025 NHL Draft Lottery will be held on Monday, May 5, at NHL Network’s studio in Secaucus, N.J. ESPN, Sportsnet, and TVA Sports will broadcast the event.  

The 2025 NHL Draft will be held over two days, June 27-28, in Los Angeles, California, at L.A. Live’s Peacock Theater.