The NHL absolutely rigged their Draft Lottery for chaos
The National Hockey League has never been accused of having creativity, but commissioner Gary Bettman just stumbled on a genius move.
If you don’t believe the NHL rigged the Draft Lottery on Friday night, I’d like to sell you some oceanfront property in Iowa.
Look, the NHL has long been accused of having zero ability to create ratings. Since Gary Bettman became commissioner in 1993, the league has had ample marketable stars and done absolutely zero with most of them.
The Draft Lottery on Friday night was barely going to make a wave in a small puddle despite being the only sporting event of any note on the calendar. Then, Bettman stepped to the fore and went full-on Roy Hobbs in The Natural.
With everyone expected the horrendous Detroit Red Wings to fall into the No. 1 overall pick, Bettman shrewdly had them drop to No. 4 overall. Then, the Ottawa Senators took the third spot with the Los Angles Kings slotting into the second.
Then, with the No. 1 overall pick on the line, Bettman went completely heel and gave us PLACEHOLDER for one of the eight teams in the qualifying round of the expanded 2020 NHL playoffs.
In short, one of the following teams will get the pick after they fall in the first round of the playoffs… should they even be played this summer:
- Pittsburgh Penguins
- Carolina Hurricanes
- New York Islanders
- Toronto Maple Leafs
- Vegas Golden Knights
- Calgary Flames
- Edmonton Oilers
- Nashville Predators
- Montreal Canadiens
- Columbus Blue Jackets
- New York Rangers
- Florida Panthers
- Chicago Blackhawks
- Arizona Coyotes
- Minnesota Wild
- Winnipeg Jets
However, should the season not be able to continue, then one of the following teams will each be given a 12.5 percent chance of earning the pick:
- Montreal Canadiens
- Columbus Blue Jackets
- New York Rangers
- Florida Panthers
- Chicago Blackhawks
- Arizona Coyotes
- Minnesota Wild
- Winnipeg Jets
Everything about this is madness. It’s chaos. But it’s going to keep the NHL in the headlines for far longer than any normal event on Friday would have, so Gary Bettman is an evil genius.