What Bruins Fans Need To Know About Draft Position Entering Offseason

The NHL regular season ended Thursday night, and the Bruins now have a better idea of where they’ll be picking in the 2025 NHL Entry Draft.

The B’s did not get the help they needed on the final night of the regular season. Boston, having missed the playoffs for the first time in nearly 10 years, had an eye on Thursday night’s Flyers-Sabres game. If Philadelphia won that game, the Bruins would have finished in the No. 4 spot. It went down to the wire, but Buffalo beat the Flyers in regulation.

The Bruins and Flyers both finished the season with 76 points, but Philly occupied the fourth spot because it had fewer regulation wins. That means the Bruins fell to No. 5.

That doesn’t mean the Bruins will draft fifth overall, though. The NHL draft lottery, scheduled for early May, will determine the final order. The Bruins may move up to No. 1 or No. 2, but Boston could also fall a spot or two.

Here’s how the lottery shakes out with percentage chance to win the No. 1 pick for each team:

San Jose — 25.5%
Chicago — 13.5%
Nashville — 11.5%
Philadelphia — 9.5%
Boston — 8.5%
Seattle — 7.5%
Buffalo — 6.5%
Anaheim — 6%
Pittsburgh — 5%
New York Islanders — 3.5%
New York Rangers — 3%

Obviously, falling from fourth to fifth in the lottery odds isn’t a massive deal; the Flyers have a 1% better chance of the No. 1 pick. However, the Bruins can still fall farther. The Bruins could end up with the fifth overall pick, but they could also fall down to No. 7.

Here’s the percentage chances of the Bruins moving up — or down — based on each pick, per Tankathon.

No. 1 overall — 8.5%
No. 2 overall — 8.6%
No. 3 overall — 0.3%
No. 4 overall — 0%
No. 5 overall — 24.5%
No. 6 overall — 44%
No. 7 overall — 14.2%

As a reminder, the Bruins don’t own their second-round pick after trading it to Washington. They do, however, have four picks in the first three rounds.

First round (TBD)
Second round (No. 51, St. Louis’ pick acquired from Edmonton in Trent Frederic trade )
Second round (No. 55, Carolina’s pick acquired from Colorado in Charlie Coyle trade)
Third round (No. 69)

The NHL draft begins June 27 in Los Angeles.