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05/05 18:27 CDT Toronto Maple Leafs win the lottery for the No. 1 pick in the
2026 NHL draft
Toronto Maple Leafs win the lottery for the No. 1 pick in the 2026 NHL draft
By STEPHEN WHYNO
AP Hockey Writer
SECAUCUS, N.J. (AP) --- The Toronto Maple Leafs have won the lottery for the
first pick in the NHL draft.
The victory comes at a critical time for Toronto in the aftermath of hiring
John Chayka as general manager and bringing back franchise legend Mats Sundin
to serve as a hockey operations adviser.
The future of captain and best player Auston Matthews is the biggest question
after missing the playoffs for the first time in his career. It's the first
time the Maple Leafs have won the lottery since taking Matthews with the No. 1
pick in 2016.
They had the fifth-highest odds of winning it at 8.5%. Vancouver had the
highest at 18.5% and has never had the first pick in the draft. Toronto would
have had to transfer its pick to Boston to complete a trade last year for
Brandon Carlo had it not been in the top five.
The Bruins and Philadelphia as a result will get the Leafs' first-rounders in
2027 and '28. For this draft, Penn State's Gavin McKenna and Swedish winger
Ivar Stenberg are rated as the top North American and European prospects by NHL
Central Scouting.
The San Jose Sharks won the lottery for the second pick.
___
AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl
