Did Connor McDavid Lose the NHL Draft Lottery?

The NHL held its Connor McDavid Sweepstakes over the weekend (also known as the draft lottery) and the results have furrowed the brows of not only McDavid himself, but just about everyone who’s interested in professional hockey.

Sure McDavid gave that canned line about "Edmonton being a great organization blah blah blah" but that face doe… pic.twitter.com/baTRb6graq

— Shane Sander (@SanderTHW) April 19, 2015

For the fourth time in six years, the Edmonton Oilers won the right to pick first in the 2015 NHL Draft. While the Oilers had the third worst record in the league behind the Buffalo Sabres and the Arizona Coyotes, experts and casual fans alike agree that McDavid doesn’t deserve the fate of toiling in Edmonton where organizational dysfunction appears to run rampant.

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The Oilers have been a mess in the last decade despite having three no. 1 overall picks currently on their roster in Taylor Hall, Nail Yakupov and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins. While the three of them haven’t been complete busts, they’ve failed to develop into the players many thought they would be as prospects. Edmonton has also done a poor job of integrating young talent in their roster, which is crucial for a small market that has trouble signing free agents. A player like McDavid could make the Oilers more attractive, but an overall failure to surround young talent with complimentary players has not been one of Edmonton’s strengths.

While many see the bad side of McDavid likely heading to Edmonton, there is a bright side that should be considered. With McDavid being a once-in-a-lifetime prospect heading to a franchise in disarray, the conspiracy theorists in the NHL fan base lose their fodder. The NHL couldn’t have wanted Edmonton to land McDavid. Many teams were seen as tanking in order to secure the young generational talent. The Toronto Maple Leafs are one of the most important teams in the league and they aren’t picking until the fourth spot. Arizona desperately needs to sell tickets. Buffalo needs some justification for completely decimating their roster in hopes of landing the no. 1 pick. The results of the draft lottery had to be honest.

The Sabres have to feel gutted after learning they would have to “settle” for former Boston University forward Jack Eichel, who would likely have been a no. 1 pick if McDavid weren’t also entering the draft in the same year. Buffalo GM Tim Murray was vocal about his disappointment in not landing McDavid. While Murray said he was “happy with second,” his sentiment is understandable.

Here’s how the rest of the draft lottery played out:

1. Edmonton Oilers
2. Buffalo Sabres
3. Arizona Coyotes
4. Toronto Maple Leafs
5. Carolina Hurricanes
6. New Jersey Devils
7. Philadelphia Flyers
8. Columbus Blue Jackets
9. San Jose Sharks
10. Colorado Avalanche
11. Florida Panthers
12. Dallas Stars
13. Los Angeles Kings
14. Boston Bruins