For teams outside of the Stanley Cup Playoffs, the offseason will finally get in full swing tonight with the NHL Draft Lottery. The San Jose Sharks enter the night with the ninth-best odds of moving up, but there is also a chance that they could fall back.

The Sharks have six possible outcomes at the 2026 NHL Draft Lottery. They could win big and earn the honor of picking first overall for the second time in three seasons, they could pick second, or even third, overall. The most likely outcome is that they stay in place and pick ninth overall, but they could also fall to either the 10th or 11th overall pick as well.

First overall - 5.0%

Second overall - 5.2%

Third overall - 0.2%

Ninth overall - 64.4%

Tenth overall - 23.5%

Eleventh overall - 1.7%

Odds via TSN

In the United States, the 2026 NHL Draft Lottery will be broadcast on ESPN beginning at 4 p.m. PT. For those in Canada, it'll be available on Sportsnet and TVA Sports. 

The San Jose Sharks have only won the NHL Draft Lottery once in 2024, however that was only because they entered event with the highest odds on the night. That first-overall selection, Macklin Celebrini, ended up changing the franchise's trajectory right out of the gate. 

Last year, the Sharks were again projected to earn the first-overall pick heading into the Draft Lottery which would've earned them the right to select star defenseman Matthew Schaefer. Luck wasn't in their favor on that occasion, as the New York Islanders jumped from the 10th overall pick to the first pick, dropping the Sharks to the second selection.

Important note, no team in the 30-year history of the NHL Draft Lottery has earned the first overall pick with the ninth-best odds entering the night, meaning history doesn't favor the Sharks tonight.