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AT RANDOM: FEELING LUCKY?
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Robin Brownlee
Apr 25, 2016, 13:31 EDTUpdated:
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Based on pure entertainment value alone, I’ve got to admit I wouldn’t mind seeing the Edmonton Oilers win the NHL Draft Lottery Saturday, providing long-suffering fans an encore of the day Connor McDavid’s golden ticket to Alberta was punched and the moaning and whining from Toronto began.
Some of it was perfectly understandable, of course, given the run of first overall picks the inept Oilers have gathered during their 10 years out of the playoffs. It was to be expected from fans of other teams, like the Maple Leafs, but I was surprised by the indignant reaction of some members of the media, those without a rooting interest in the process.
There was some funny stuff, like here generated elsewhere as Oiler fans fist-pumped and celebrated, but there was also much consternation the “greater good” of the NHL was not being served by the luck of the draw – there is a case to be made for that. As one example, here’s a few snippets from TSN’s The Reporters, following the lottery.

WHAT THEY SAID

Host Dave Hodge: “Perhaps you heard, the Edmonton Oilers won the right to draft Connor McDavid and Jack Eichel will be welcomed in Buffalo…
But first, it was my intention to talk about the games on the ice. But I’m guessing we ought to start with the game of luck. Or, your choice, Bruce…”
Bruce Arthur, Toronto Star: “We’re going to talk about Connor McDavid and Edmonton. It had to be Edmonton. Here’s the thing. Buffalo did everything right, tanking, and Arizona did everything right, tanking. But you’re playing on Edmonton’s turf. This is their game. Life isn’t fair. I’m not even mad that he’s not coming to Toronto, I’m happy he’s not going to Arizona, but this franchise is now being rewarded for the old-fashioned kind of tanking — the incompetence sort of tanking.
“This franchise has tried to pull itself out of a morass that has been going on now since 2007, and now Daryl Katz is going to be rewarded, and Kevin Lowe is going to be rewarded, and now the Edmonton Oilers are going to have Connor McDavid’s career to play with. This is not good. No offence to Edmonton Oilers fans by the way, good for them, I hope you’re happy. History says you might not be.”
Steve Simmons, Toronto Sun: “There is a reason that he looked unhappy, it’s because he was unhappy. He did the stiff upper lip, “I’m not going to say anything and I’m not going to come out and say what’s on my mind”. This isn’t where Connor McDavid wanted to be drafted to. One of the people he holds dearest in the world, Sherry Bassin, the general manager/owner of the Erie Otters, is being sued by Daryl Katz, owner of the Edmonton Oilers. Don’t you think that was on his mind last night?”
That’s not the full segment. More of what was said is here in an item by Bruce McCurdy at the Cult of Hockey, but I can’t find the video of the entire show. This wasn’t anywhere near the top of the list of over-the-top media reaction to the McDavid lottery win, but you get the drift. Yes, Edmonton got lucky. That’s what lotteries are about.

THIS TIME AROUND

So, here were are with the second round of playoffs looming on the eve of the 2016 lottery. There is no McDavid up for grabs in this draft class after a season in which the Maple Leafs finished 30th a year after the big one unfairly got away, but there’s unquestionably a few franchise building blocks (or bargaining chips) at the very top of the order in Auston Matthews, Patrik Laine, Jesse Puljujärvi and Jacob Chychrun. 
The odds for the Oilers going into the 2016 lottery:
  • 1st (13.5% chance)
  • 2nd (13.1% chance)
  • 3rd (12.5% chance)
  • 4th (35.2% chance)
  • 5th (25.8% chance)
Another golden ticket would certainly provide GM Peter Chiarelli some options, notably shopping the first overall pick as part of a package as a means to shore up a blue line that needs a couple of top-four, right-shot defensemen without digging as deeply into the core of his existing roster.
If the pick doesn’t end up as part of a done-deal, well, I can think of worse things than having Matthews patrolling the right wing, especially if Jordan Eberle ends up being dealt for a D-man, Likewise, having Laine slotted in for duty on the left wing if another GM decides he simply must have Taylor Hall if he’s going to offer up the proven first-pairing guy Chiarelli needs. We’ll know in six days what Chiarelli has to work with.
I offered my take on the evolving NHL lottery system in January 2015 here. Putting aside any amusement at the prospect of more moaning from fans in Hogtown if the Oilers get lucky again, I still see the need for more changes to the format — even if they’re not as radical as those I proposed. Until that happens, well, we wait for the balls to drop.

ONE LAST THING

Back on April 18, I mentioned a GoFundMe page and a May 1 auction in support of a single mom whose children attend my son’s school. Some of our readers have already responded and I’d like to thank those who have for their generosity. The updated page is here.
While the deadline for gathering items for the auction has passed, you can still donate via the link above. As for the auction component of the campaign, it’s being held this coming Sunday from 3 to 5 p.m. at the Lessard Community Hall, 17404 57th Ave. 
Listen to Robin Brownlee Wednesdays and Thursdays from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. on the Jason Gregor Show on TSN 1260.

RECENTLY BY ROBIN BROWNLEE  

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