Connect with us

Montreal Canadiens

Canadiens Draft Hopes Now Lie In Toronto’s Hands

Published

on

Montreal Canadiens Draft Lottery

The Montreal Canadiens are gearing up for the 2023 NHL Draft, and they’ll need a bit of help from an old rival to stay in good position.

The Canadiens impatiently await the results of the 2023 NHL Draft Lottery, where the rank of their own first-round pick will be determined.

By May 8, the Habs’ own rank will be set in stone, but they’ll likely still be waiting on the official rank of their second first-round pick, acquired last spring from the Florida Panthers.

After the Panthers upset the Boston Bruins in the first round of the NHL Playoffs, they’re now moving on to the second round; where they’ll do battle with the Toronto Maple Leafs for the Atlantic Division crown.

Although the Panthers defeated the Bruins in dramatic fashion on Sunday night, their draft pick’s final rank could still remain at 17th overall with a little help from Toronto.

Due to Florida having the worst regular season record of all playoff teams, their pick could remain at 17th overall should the Maple Leafs come out on top and punch their ticket to the Eastern Conference Finals.

That’s because playoff outcomes don’t impact draft pick rankings until you get to the final four teams, who are awarded the 29th, 30th, 31st and 32nd overall picks according to how the final two rounds play out.

Should the Panthers defeat the Maple Leafs, the Montreal Canadiens would see Florida’s pick slide from 17th to 29th or higher; a massive drop in quality for them as they prepare for a stacked draft class.

As of now, NHL betting odds currently have the Maple Leafs as a slight -160 favourites in their upcoming series against the Panthers, but, as we saw in their series against Boston, Florida is perfectly comfortable playing the underdog.

With the Montreal Canadiens’ management teams getting an extended look at the impressive 2023 draft class during the IIHF U-18 Championships this past week, you know they’ll be paying close attention to the outcome of this series.

*For more NHL betting lines and futures, head over to FanDuel