How is the top of 2026 NHL Draft shaping up for Canucks? 3 thoughts a week from lottery night

The NHL Draft Lottery has always been cruel to the Vancouver Canucks.Next week, however, perhaps things will be different. There’s at least a chance, and a good one.By virtue of their 32nd-place finish, the Canucks will be allocated 185 of the 1,000 possible combinations of draft lottery balls when the NHL holds the annual draw in New Jersey on May 5. It will be a critical night for Canucks fans, and for a franchise that has never once benefited from the good fortune of a random draw at any point in its history.Advertisement