Seattle Kraken get one of the top picks in lottery for the 2021 NHL Entry Draft

The Seattle Kraken took another step toward building their team during the NHL Entry Draft lottery on Wednesday.

General manager Ron Francis and the Kraken earned the No. 2 overall pick in the 2021 NHL Draft. The Buffalo Sabres will pick first while the Anaheim Ducks will go third. In addition to the Kraken, the lottery featured the 15 teams that didn’t make the playoffs. The Kraken had the third-best chance (10.3%) of winning the top pick, the same odds as the New Jersey Devils.

Because they had the worst record this season, the Sabres had the best chance (16.6%) of earning the No. 1 selection.

University of Michigan defenseman Owen Power is widely projected as the No. 1 overall pick. After him, highly-rated defensemen include Simon Edvinsson (SWE-JR), Luke Hughes (U.S. National Team Development Program) and Brandt Clarke (Ontario Hockey League). At center, Michigan’s Matthew Beniers and Kent Johnson are both projected to be top-10 picks.

The NHL Expansion Draft, during which the Kraken will select one player each from 30 teams, will take place on July 21. The NHL Entry Draft will follow from July 23-24.

Here is the full NHL pick order revealed on Wednesday. Picks 16-31 will be determined by the results of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

1. Buffalo Sabres
2. Seattle Kraken
3. Anaheim Ducks
4. New Jersey Devils
5. Columbus Blue Jackets
6. Detroit Red Wings
7. San Jose Sharks
8. Los Angeles Kings
9. Vancouver Canucks
10. Ottawa Senators
11. Chicago Blackhawks
12. Calgary Flames
13. Philadelphia Flyers
14. Dallas Stars
15. New York Rangers

This story was originally published June 2, 2021 at 4:47 PM.

Lauren Kirschman

The News Tribune

Lauren Kirschman is the Seattle Kraken beat writer for The News Tribune. She previously covered the Pittsburgh Steelers for PennLive.com. A Pennsylvania native and a University of Pittsburgh graduate, she also covered college athletics for the Beaver County Times from 2012-2016.