NJ Devils move up, will pick 2nd overall in 2022 NHL Draft following Lottery reveal

Robert Aitken Jr., NorthJersey.com

May 10, 2022 at 8:03 PM·2 min read

Another season without a playoff appearance has resulted in another top 10 selection for the New Jersey Devils in the upcoming draft. The Devils jumped up the Draft Lottery and own the rights to the second overall pick.

It's the third time since 2017 that the Devils will have a top two pick in the draft. In 2017, the Devils won the Draft Lottery, selecting Nico Hischier first overall. In 2019, the Devils were number one again, selecting Jack Hughes. In 2011, the Devils also won the Draft Lottery, but rules at the time would not let the Devils jump up from the 11th-best odds to pick number one.

The Devils began the draft lottery with the fifth-best odds among all NHL teams to win the first overall pick with 8.5 percent odds. The league's worst record belonged to the Montreal Canadiens, who had the best odds overall at 18.5 percent.

It's will be the fourth straight draft in which the Devils select among the top seven picks. The last time that the Devils won the draft was in 2019, when Jack Hughes was selected first overall. The Devils selected Alexander Holtz with the seventh overall pick in 2020. Last season saw the Devils pick fourth and draft Jack's younger brother, Luke Hughes.

Targets: 3 top prospects available for NJ Devils after NHL Draft Lottery climb

Now, the Devils will have just under two months to evaluate the top draft prospects or potentially trade away the pick for a veteran player.

The 2022 NHL Draft will take place at Bell Centre in Montreal across two days. Round 1 will be held on Thursday, July 7, followed by Rounds 2-7 on Friday, July 8.