The Buffalo Sabres will find out where they will select in the 2022 NHL Draft in tomorrow evening’s annual draft lottery.
The Buffalo Sabres are no stranger to the NHL Draft Lottery, having taken part in each over the past decade. However, this year is a little different, with much more optimism surrounding the franchise.
The Sabres will have two lottery picks, assuming the Vegas Golden Knights selection, which they acquired following the Jack Eichel Trade, falls between 11th and 16th overall.
If you are unsure about where the Sabres will pick, I will provide clarity below regarding their odds of winning the lottery, where they will most likely pick, and their odds of winning Vegas’ selection this season. Note, that if the Golden Knights win a top-ten pick, the Sabres will acquire their 2023 first-round selection.
Likeliest scenarios for the Buffalo Sabres in the 2022 NHL Draft Lottery
The Sabres finished the season with the ninth-lowest points total (75 points). This gives them a 5.0 percent chance, the ninth-highest odds, of winning the first overall pick.
Vegas finished the season with 94 points, giving them the 15th-highest odds (tied with the Vancouver Canucks) of winning the first pick at 0.5 percent.
The Montreal Canadiens hold the highest odds of snagging the first overall pick at 18.5 percent. Following the Canadiens are the Arizona Coyotes (13.5), Seattle Kraken (11.5), and Philadelphia Flyers (9.5).
Since the Sabres finished with the ninth-lowest points total, they will most likely win the ninth pick in the 2022 NHL Draft, and they are within 1.5 percentage points of landing anything between the sixth and the 11th pick.
Vegas will most likely win the 15th or 16th selection. And they are within 1.5 percentage points of landing the 13th pick. The Golden Knights are three percentage points away from landing the 10th pick or higher, which gives them slim odds of retaining their pick this season.
The Sabres can land much-needed talent in this draft and continue to fill the lower lines of their organization, given the influx of young emerging stars like Jack Quinn and J.J. Peterka likely rising to the NHL ranks this coming season.
(NHL Draft Lottery Odds provided by MSN.com)