The Philadelphia Flyers will retain the 12th overall pick in the 2024 NHL Draft after making no adjustments in the lottery.
The San Jose Sharks won the 2024 NHL Draft Lottery, with the Chicago Blackhawks and Anaheim Ducks finishing in the top three. Essentially, the Flyers are out of the hunt for a truly exceptional talent unless something unexpected happens, such as a possible Flyers trade with a team above them.
Though it might be disappointing that the Flyers could not win the 2024 NHL Draft Lottery and move all the way up to the No. 2 overall pick, this outcome is what Danny Briere and Co. had been prepared for this whole time. After all, the Flyers had the third-highest odds of remaining at their current draft slot, which is exactly what happened on Tuesday night.
Taking a positive outlook, the Flyers won by not losing. There was always the possibility that they might fall back to the 13th or 14th overall choice, which could have had disastrous consequences.
With the 2024 NHL Draft coming place at the end of next month (June 28 and 29), the Flyers will still have plenty of time to focus on some of the talents they have already scouted. Konsta Helenius, Cole Eiserman, Tij Iginla, Carter Yakemchuk, Berkly Catton, and Zeev Buium could all be in the mix for the Flyers at No. 12, and they are all players the franchise can build around in a meaningful way.
Indeed, the Flyers will not draft the Robin to Matvei Michkov’s Batman just yet, but they may always trade up in this year’s draft or regress to a higher pick in the 2025 NHL Draft. As the lottery results from Tuesday night demonstrated, all it takes is a stroke of luck.
The Flyers didn’t have much luck in the 2024 NHL Draft Lottery, but things could have been worse. Actually, it’s far worse.
