NEW YORK -- Chicago won the NHL draft lottery Tuesday, giving the Blackhawks a reason to celebrate after missing the playoffs for the eighth time in nine seasons.
The Blackhawks, who will pick first in the June draft, had the fifth worst record and only an 8.1 percent chance to come out on top in the lottery.
The Philadelphia Flyers, who had a league-low 56 points in the worst season of their 40-year history, own the second pick followed by Phoenix, Los Angeles and Washington.
Edmonton is sixth before Columbus, Boston, St. Louis and Florida. Carolina is No. 11, followed by Montreal, Toronto and Colorado.
Five teams with the fewest points in the regular season had a shot at the No. 1 pick. No team could move up more than four places and none could fall beyond one slot.
Chicago has never picked first. Denis Savard (1980), Ed Olczyk (1984), Cam Barker (2004) and Jonathan Toews (2006) were all chosen by the Blackhawks with the No. 3 selection, the team's highest position since 1969.
The Flyers had the best chance to win the top pick, owning 25 percent of the combinations in the hopper. Positions 15 to 30 will be determined at the end of the Stanley Cup playoffs.
The first round of the draft will be June 22 at Nationwide Arena in Columbus, Ohio, with the remaining rounds the following day.
