Canucks were ONE NUMBER away from winning NHL Draft Lottery

The Canucks just got a kick while they were down.

After Saturday’s devastating result that Vancouver will pick fifth in the upcoming draft, news came out that the Canucks were just one number away from winning first overall.

New Jersey Devils won the #NHLDraftLottery with a number combination of 1, 5, 6, 12. Canucks had 1, 5, 6, 11. Red Wings had 1, 5, 6, 13.

— Mike Johnston (@MikeyJ_MMA) April 30, 2017

So close… yet so far.

For those unfamiliar, each pick in the Draft Lottery is decided by the drawing of four numbered ping pong balls. Each lottery team has a number of combinations assigned to them, with the worst teams obviously receiving more combinations.

The first three numbers drawn for first overall matched one of Vancouver’s combinations, but the final ball – number 12 – was one above what the Canucks needed. The winning draw was 1, 5, 6, 12, while the Canucks had 1, 5, 6, 11.

Of course.

See also

• More Draft Lottery disappointment, Canucks to pick 5th

The Detroit Red Wings were arguably even unluckier, as they were one number away from each of the top two picks. Then again, they weren’t a bottom-three team.

The odds of the draft lottery going down the way it did were catastrophically low. There’s some discrepancy on what the exact number actually is, but either way, it was highly improbable.

Chances of draft lottery finishing NJ 1, PHI 2, DAL 3 was 0.01327%, or 1 in 7534.
But good for @TSN1040 and their #AlternativeFacts https://t.co/ujS3mnJLp8

— Sir Earl (@Sir_Earl) April 30, 2017

As much as it sucks to miss out on one of Nico Hischier or Nolan Patrick at the top of the draft, there will still be very good prospects available when Jim Benning takes to the podium.

Dallas (third pick) and Colorado (fourth) both have a pressing need for defence. That could leave high-potential centres like Gabe Vilardi, Casey Mittelstadt, or Cody Glass available. The Canucks could also opt to select Elias Pettersson, who played this past season on a line with Jonathan Dahlen in Sweden.

While the Canucks will still add a good piece to their prospect pool, it certainly isn’t the result they had hoped for.

Officially adding "NHL lottery ball specialist" to my hockey resume.

— Taylor Hall (@hallsy09) April 30, 2017

Maybe they should look into acquiring Taylor Hall.