With 52 points in 57 games this season, the Buffalo Sabres are currently the fourth-worst team in the NHL.
They’re ahead of the Columbus Blue Jackets, who have the same amount of points in as many games; the Edmonton Oilers, who have 50 in 57, and the Toronto Maple Leafs, who have 49 in 55.
What does it mean?
Well, obviously that the Buffalo Sabres could have another chance at selecting first overall when the NHL Draft comes in late June.
With the draft now just about four months away, it’s never too early to start using our handy-dandy online NHL Lottery Simulator to see just where the Buffalo Sabres might fall.
With the standings at their current position, the Oilers have the best chance at winning the draft lottery, with a 20 percent chance. The Leafs have a 13.5 percentchance, while the Blue Jackets have an 11.5 percent chance.
The Buffalo Sabres have a 9.5 percent chance of getting that coveted first-overall pick.
So – let’s run the simulator, shall we? I’m using NHLLotterySimulator.com for these purposes.
Here’s my first run:
I think Buffalo Sabres will happily take this one. A first-overall draft pick with the chance to pick up the coveted Auston Matthews? Yes please. Whatever happens after that is just fine with us, though it does admittedly stink to see the Leafs have a chance at a top-three pick. Oh well – we’d have three in the last three years between Eichel, Reinhart & this one.
Let’s run it again:
Okay, maybe not such a big fan of this one, with the Buffalo Sabres dropping all the way to the seventh overall pick. While that’s still certainly nothing to turn your nose up at, it’s also not a top-three pick.
It’s a bit surprising initially to see the Habs up in the top three here, but then again, that’s what half a season of poor performance will do for you.
How about we run it a third time:
Blech. Again, not too big a fan of this result, which has the Buffalo Sabres picking sixth with two divisional foes – Montreal and Toronto – above them.
Alright, so I went ahead and ran that simulator 97 more times, for a total of 100 simulations. Here’s how things panned out:
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Out of 100 simulations, the Buffalo Sabres got 31 top-three picks. That included nine times picking first overall, 12 times getting the second-overall section and 10 times winding up with the third-overall pick.
The Edmonton Oilers ended up with the first-overall selection 20/100 times. The Blue Jackets got it 14 times, while Winnipeg picked first 10 times.
Other first-overall picks: Arizona (7), Carolina (5), Calgary (5), Minnesota (2), Montreal (2), New Jersey (1), Ottawa (9), Philadelphia (1), Toronto (9), Vancouver (6).
Canadian fans: a team from Canada got the first-overall section 59/100 times. In the end, Canadian teams swept the top three picks 24 times.
While the actual draft lottery is still a few months away, and the draft itself a few months beyond that, here’s just a first glance at what things could look like when those days roll around.
Next: Sabres Improving, But Still at Bottom
Any thoughts? Share yours in the comments below.