Oilers win lottery, will select first overall
by Edmonton Oilers Press Release / Edmonton Oilers| Cam Fowler, Tyler Seguin & Taylor Hall are the top three NHL prospects heading into the 2010 Entry Draft.
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The Oilers received the right to pick first overall when they won the NHL’s Draft Lottery, held Tuesday night in New York City.
“This is a significant moment for the organization and its an important part of the process moving forward. We have the first overall pick in this year’s draft,” said Oilers General Manager, Steve Tambellini. “This is a very exciting time for our organization and our fans. Securing the first overall draft selection tonight provides a tremendous opportunity for the Oilers."
The 2010 NHL Entry Draft will mark the first time in franchise history the Oilers will select first overall.
The Draft Lottery is a weighted lottery system to determine the order of selection for the first 14 picks of the NHL Entry Draft. It gives the teams that finish with the fewest points during the regular season the greatest chance of winning the Draft Lottery.
Only the 14 teams that do not qualify for the Stanley Cup Playoffs, or clubs that acquired those clubs’ first-round draft picks, participate in the drawing.
Fourteen balls, numbered 1 to 14, are placed in a lottery machine. The machine expels four balls, forming a series of numbers. The four-digit series resulting from the expulsion of the balls is matched against a probability chart that divides the possible combinations among the 14 participating clubs. The Lottery was incorporated in 1995 by the NHL.
Edmonton Oilers hockey is presented in part by the Rexall Family of Pharmacies, Molson Canadian, ATB Financial, TELUS, Cenovus Energy and Ford.