For the first time, the NHL will run its draft lottery for the top three picks. But that's not the only thing you need to know for the 2016 NHL Draft lottery.
As a result of the new format, the team who finished 30th in the regular season can now drop to fourth overall, and will not be guaranteed a top-two pick. After the three lotteries are run, the 11 remaining teams will slot into pick 4-14 based on where they finished in the standings (least points picking 4th, with regulation and overtime wins for all tiebreakers).
Last season, the NHL Draft gave all 14 non-playoff teams a chance to pick first overall -- where only the worst five teams had previously been able to move up to the top selection -- for the first time.
In order to in theory prevent tanking for the first overall pick in two draft classes where Connor McDavid and Auston Matthews were available, the NHL has also reduced the odds of the 30th overall team winning the lottery from one-in-four in 2014 to one-in-five in 2015 and 2016. In 2015, the Edmonton Oilers had an 11.5 per cent chance of winning the lottery when they moved up to select McDavid.
Because the lottery is now being held for three different selections, each non-playoff team can pick anywhere from four to seven different spots, dependent on which teams ahead or behind them in the standings win each of the top three picks.
Under the new system, the seven lowest finishing teams actually have higher odds of moving back one spot in the draft than any of their chances of moving up or staying put.
The 2016 NHL Draft lottery will be held on April 30, 2016, in Toronto ahead of the first round of this year's draft on June 24 in Buffalo. After each draw, the remaining teams will readjust proportionally.
In order for a prospect to be eligible for the 2016 NHL Draft, he must be 18 years old on or before Sept. 15, 2016.
Below are the full lottery odds for each possible pick for all non-playoff teams.
Odds of picking percentages
| Team | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | 5th | 6th | 7th | 8th | 9th | 10th | 11th | 12th | 13th | 14th |
| Toronto | 20.000 | 17.486 | 15.020 | 47.494 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Edmonton | 13.500 | 13.071 | 12.478 | 35.161 | 25.790 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Vancouver | 11.500 | 11.435 | 11.259 | 14.196 | 37.809 | 13.801 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Columbus | 9.500 | 9.684 | 9.816 | 3.149 | 27.308 | 33.186 | 7.358 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Calgary | 8.500 | 8.767 | 9.011 | 0 | 9.094 | 35.465 | 25.467 | 3.697 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Winnipeg | 7.500 | 7.824 | 8.150 | 0 | 0 | 17.548 | 39.309 | 17.940 | 1.730 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Arizona | 6.500 | 6.856 | 7.234 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 27.866 | 39.140 | 11.662 | 0.742 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Buffalo | 6.000 | 6.363 | 6.756 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 39.223 | 34.764 | 6.627 | 0.267 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Montreal | 5.000 | 5.358 | 5.579 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 51.845 | 28.582 | 3.375 | 0.081 | 0 | 0 |
| Colorado | 3.500 | 3.808 | 4.165 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 64.049 | 22.807 | 1.649 | 0.022 | 0 |
| New Jersey | 3.000 | 3.280 | 3.608 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 73.551 | 15.939 | 0.620 | 0.003 |
| Ottawa | 2.500 | 2.747 | 3.038 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 82.331 | 9.251 | 0.133 |
| Carolina | 2.000 | 2.208 | 2.455 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 90.108 | 3.230 |
| Boston | 1.000 | 1.114 | 1.252 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 96.634 |
For the Toronto Maple Leafs, the 30th-place finish still means there's a nearly 50/50 chance they don't draft in the top three. In a class where a clear-cut top three has developed, and the players ranked from 4-8 can all be reasonably argued as the fourth best prospect in the class, those odds aren't nothing.
If all three of the lotteries are won by teams who finished 27th or higher then the Leafs in all likelihood won't have a chance at selecting any of Auston Matthews, Patrik Laine, and Jesse Puljujarvi.
Still, for the second straight season, the Leafs will have a top-four pick.
