What to expect if your team wins the Connor Bedard sweepstakes
These teams all have low odds to win the Connor Bedard sweepstakes.
The Nashville Predators, Pittsburgh Penguins, Buffalo Sabres, and Ottawa Senators are the four teams that missed the playoffs that don’t have any chance to win the first overall pick. They can win the lottery but they would only move up ten spots which is short of the first selection.
The rest of the non-playoff teams, however, all have a chance at the top prize. This is what to expect if your team is one of them and they get Bedard:
Vancouver Canucks – 3%
The Vancouver Canucks had a very up-and-down season but they did have Elias Petterson who had 102 points which was good for 10th in the NHL. Watching him play with Connor Bedard would be absolute hockey magic.
Add in guys like Quinn Hughes, JT Miller, and Andrei Kuzmenko amongst others and other could be some really nice plays made there. They might even take a step toward being a playoff team with another year of Rick Tocchet as the head coach.
St. Louis Blues – 3.5%
The St. Louis Blues sold a lot in 2022-23 and were still a good team. They sent Ryan O’Reilly and Vladimir Tarasenko away but managed to stay in the race for most of the season after a bad start. If they won the lottery, they would center the retool around him.
A power play that includes the likes of Robert Thomas and Jordan Kyrou with Bedard would be so much fun to watch. All of these guys are super skilled and some of the players surrounding Bedard in this situation are playoff tested so he’d be in a great spot.
Detroit Red Wings – 5%
The Detroit Red Wings are so close. Everything you see with the New Jersey Devils going from a bad team to a Stanley Cup contender in one year could happen if Connor Bedard joined that team.
They have built a very nice young core and it is only going to get better. If you threw in Bedard, you’d see him skate with superstars like Dylan Larkin and Lucas Raymond which would just be so much fun.
Washington Capitals – 6%
What would you expect if the Washington Capitals landed Connor Bedard? Well, he’d sure help Alexander Ovechkin chase Wayne Gretzky’s all-time goals record. He is going to break that over the next two years and it would be way easier if Bedard joined him.
Bedard would also help Washington take it farther than that. He would make them start thinking of the playoffs again as well which is fun to think about. Their high-end skill is still there and Bedard would only bring it out more.
These teams all have medium odds of landing Connor Bedard’s elite talent.
Philadelphia Flyers – 6.5%
The Philadelphia Flyers were probably expected to be even lower on this list but they managed to have some good games in 2022-23. They weren’t at the bottom of the league which has its pros and cons.
Of course, they have a long way to go before they are a Stanley Cup contender again and Connor Bedard would go a long way in helping them build back up. They haven’t completely torn it down in Philly so he’d certainly be playing with some good veterans like Travis Konecny and Kevin Hayes.
Arizona Coyotes – 7.5%
The Arizona Coyotes, much like the Philadelphia Flyers, were expected to have a much higher percentage. For the entire first half of the season, they looked like they might finish at the bottom of the league. However, they had other ideas.
Guys like Clayton Keller, Nick Schmaltz, Matias Maccelli, and Lawson Crouse all turned it on and were so good. If a team that worked hard deserved the lottery the most, it would be them. Bedard and Keller would be as good as any duo in the league.
Montreal Canadiens – 8.5%
The winner of the 2022 NHL Draft Lottery has the fifth-best odds to do it again. Juraj Slafkovsky was the first overall pick last year and he didn’t have the best year. However, someone like Connor Bedard might be able to help unlock his skills.
Add in kids like Cole Caufield, Kirby Dack, and Nick Suzuki amongst others, and the next great Montreal Canadiens core could be in place. All of those youngsters would be very fun to watch skate together in one of hockey’s most important markets.
San Jose Sharks – 9.5%
The San Jose Sharks flirted with having the best odds at the lottery for a little bit at the end of the year but it didn’t end up happening.
However, they still have the fourth-best odds and will be hopeful while the lottery is taking place. Seeing kids like Connor Bedard and William Eklund play/grow up together would certainly be awesome. The plays that they would make would dazzle all hockey fans.
The Sharks could use another superstar as they rebuild and Bedard would be perfect for them. California could use some Connor Bedard right now. He would look great in teal. If he went there, you can expect to see him do very well.
The best odds at Connor Bedard belong to these three NHL teams heading in.
Chicago Blackhawks – 11.5%
The Chicago Blackhawks were the worst team in the NHL this season. They might not have the best odds but they overachieved a little bit in that aspect. Most people would take teams 31 and 32 over Chicago’s roster on paper.
However, they have a very good prospect pool but they are missing that one elite talent up front. Seeing him develop with guys like Lukas Reichel, Kevin Korchinski, and Ethan del Mastro amongst others would be very cool. They might even start building chemistry as soon as next year.
Columbus Blue Jackets – 13.5%
The Columbus Blue Jackets were not at all expected to be in this position. They weren’t able to secure the best odds at the lottery but being in second isn’t the worst thing ever.
They signed Johnny Gaudreau to a large contract over the summer and thought they would be contending for a playoff spot instead of the draft lottery. Well, now Gaudreau could be playing with Bedard which would be really cool to see.
With other studs like Kent Johnson and Patrik Laine trying to make an impact, this team would look really good with Bedard helping them make plays.
Anaheim Ducks – 25.5%
The Anaheim Ducks have the best odds to win Connor Bedard. They were certainly bad in 2022-23 and they could be rewarded for it. They have a one-in-four chance to secure that top spot. They will come into the draft lottery event feeling very good about themselves.
The main attraction with the Anaheim Ducks right now is Trevor Zegras. He isn’t a top scorer in the NHL yet but the plays he does make are always of the “video game” variety.
If this kid was put with Bedard, you might start to see some of the most impressive plays in the entire NHL. With other young stars there like Jamie Drysdale and Mason McTavish, this team will really start to turn the corner if they add a superstar like Bedard.
We talked about California getting a star with the San Jose Sharks. Well, the same thing applies to the Ducks. This great hockey state has seen many stars go through over the years and Bedard would really help them grow the game even more.
Clearly, every team that has a chance at Bedard has a reason to want him. They also all have players that would be exciting to watch on a line with him. He is also so good that he will change one of these franchises for a very long time.
Winning the Stanley Cup is the most important thing but growing the game is big too. If Bedard is as good as advertised, he will certainly be a great helper in that area as well.
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