“When you gotta turn the newspaper upside down to feel good, it’s not a good thing.” —Mike Babcock
Set aside the Mexican standoff being waged by Boston, Philadelphia and Detroit for the remaining two playoff spots in the Eastern Conference, and the most intriguing race in these final, injury-shutdown days of the NHL regular season is for dead last.
For fans of Canadian teams especially, the morning routine involves flipping the newspaper upside down to see who Lost One for Auston.
Let’s check in on the worst teams with the best shot at landing the No. 1 overall pick (i.e., super centre Auston Matthews) when the lottery is held April 30.
Unless you live in Edmonton, plug your eyes. Stop reading. After dropping five of their last six and ticking off their head coach, Oilers are best-positioned to secure the 20 per cent chance of winning the Matthews Sweepstakes. Edmonton is knotted with Toronto with a league-worst 67 points, but Toronto holds a dreaded game in hand.
If there is a silver lining for those tired of seeing the Oilers’ golden lottery card, it’s that Edmonton’s final two contests come against a thin Vancouver squad and maybe the youngsters will be inspired to win the final game at Rexall Place Wednesday with Wayne Gretzky and the ’80s dynasty watching overhead.
Like their western nemesis, Toronto has come to its senses and lost five of its last six games. That the season of the Leafs’ No. 1 centre, the suspended Nazem Kadri, has come to an abrupt end helps their chances of losing. Still, the Leafs’ final three games — versus Columbus, Philadelphia and New Jersey — are all winnable.
If the Oilers and Leafs finish tied in points, Toronto would secure 30th place because Edmonton has a healthy lead in ROW.
The 28th-place Blue Jackets — yep, another team that’s lost five of its last six — are three points up on the Oilers and Maple Leafs and thus need help from two teams if they are to drop back to 30th.
Coach John Tortorella is doing his part to help the cause. On Monday he benched Sergei Bobrovsky and healthy-scratched Scott Hartnell. Wednesday’s match in Toronto is an unofficial Tank Bowl.
Winnipeg snapped its four-game skid with an inspired outing against Minnesota in its final home game Sunday. But a deadly three-game road swing through California could drop the Jets as low as 28th.
The Flames essentially demolished any notion of finishing last with their 5-0 beatdown of Edmonton Saturday. Considering they draw the Kings and Wild in two of their final three games, Calgary could drop a spot or two. Best bet? Play Jonas Hiller, who has lost eight of his last nine starts.
Vancouver was heading the right way, lottery-wise, putting a fright into Oilers and Leafs fans with a nine-game losing skid. But three consecutive W’s over the good California teams has pushed Vancouver to 73 points.
The Canucks draw the awful Oilers (twice) and Flames (once) to round out a disappointing campaign. Lose all three in regulation and there is still a mathematical chance they drop all the way to 30th. Highly unlikely, though.
For fits and giggles, we cranked up the ol’ NHL draft lottery simulator this morning to see who would win today.
If true, Tortorella will get to shape and mold a young Auston Matthews.
