Stop us if you’ve heard this before: Fans are accusing a professional sports draft lottery of being rigged.
On Monday, the NHL held the 2023 draft lottery. This one carried more excitement and anticipation than most other past lotteries, since the 2023 class is headlined by generational prospect Connor Bedard.
The Chicago Blackhawks, who carried the third-best at 11.5 percent, were the lucky winners of the Bedard sweepstakes. For a variety of reasons, fans are accusing the league of rigging it in Chicago’s favor.
One key reason? NHL analyst Kevin Weekes revealed that the Columbus Blue Jackets had the third overall selection before Bill Daly even revealed the pick. Columbus had the second-best odds at 13.5 percent.
Here’s the clip below:
And here are some calls from fans about the league rigging the draft lottery…
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The Blackhawks formed a dynasty in the 2010s, winning Stanley Cups in 2010, 2013 and 2015. But they’ve made the postseason just once since 2018 (in 2020 thanks to the expanded 24-team postseason format).
The last time Chicago picked first overall, it did wonders for the franchise. They landed American winger Patrick Kane with the top selection in 2007, and he was a key cog in their rise to prominence during the 2010s.
Bedard, regarded as the greatest NHL prospect since Edmonton Oilers captain Connor McDavid, put up 143 points in just 57 games for the WHL’s Regina Pats.
