The Montreal Canadiens Will Have First Pick In The 2022 NHL Draft

The Montreal Canadians have quite a lot to celebrate!

The Habs have officially won the 2022 NHL Draft lottery and will be able to have the first pick come the big day in July.

The lottery, which took place on May 10, 2022, announced the Habs' win, which marks the NHL team's sixth lottery win with their first-ever having occurred in 1980 when the Canadiens selected forward player Doug Wickenheiser.

The Montreal Canadiens had an 18.5% chance of winning the NHL draft lottery, and it's safe to say the odds were certainly in their favour.

"I think it's obviously a very exciting outcome for us. Our fans I'm sure will be thrilled -- especially with the draft being held in Montreal to have that kind of anticipation and the excitement leading into it," Habs general manager Kent Hughes said during a live Q&A on Twitter following the exciting news.

"So we're excited -- I think it's a great opportunity for our organization to start taking strides toward returning to the playoffs here."

The New Jersey Devils won the number two pick, while the Arizona Coyotes took the number three pick.

The first round of the NHL draft will take place at the Bell Centre in Montreal on July 7, with rounds two to seven taking place on July 8.

The lottery included a total of 16 teams that failed to qualify for the 2022 Stanley Cup Playoffs, with the Habs coming out as number one.

This puts the Montreal Canadians in a stellar position to potentially select center player Shane Wright, who was the number one player in NHL Central Scouting's final ranking of North American skaters, the NHL stated.

With luck clearly in their favour, who knows what's in store for the Habs moving forward.

The 2022 NHL Draft order:

1. Montreal Canadiens

2. New Jersey Devils

3. Arizona Coyotes

4. Seattle Kraken

5. Philadelphia Flyers

6. Columbus Blue Jackets (via Chicago Blackhawks)

7. Ottawa Senators

8. Detroit Red Wings

9. Buffalo Sabres

10. Anaheim Ducks

11. San Jose Sharks

12. Columbus Blue Jackets

13. New York Islanders

14. Winnipeg Jets

15. Vancouver Canucks

16. Vegas Golden Knights

This article's cover image was used for illustrative purposes only.