The New York Rangers were swept in the qualifying round but got an impressive consolation prize by winning the second phase of the draft lottery Monday and the right to choose high-scoring winger Alexis Lafreniere.
Lafreniere dominated the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League with 112 points in 52 games for the Rimouski Oceanic before the coronavirus shut down that league's play.
The NHL had to go to a second lottery round because none of the seven teams that failed to make the expanded 24-team postseason field won the initial lottery. That drawing awarded the pick to one of the teams that lost in the qualifying round, even though there was only a 2.5% chance of that happening.
The Rangers, who fell to the Carolina Hurricanes in three games, picked second overall last year, taking Kaapo Kakko.
Lafreniere joins a major media market and a team that has MVP finalist Artemi Panarin and 40-goal scorer Mika Zibanejad. The Rangers finished with 79 points.
"The Rangers are an unreal team with really good players and a really nice city," Lafreniere told NHL Network. "For sure, it's really good news and I'm really happy."
Each of the eight teams had an equal chance (12.5%) of winning Monday, and the drawing was shown live on television.
Lafreniere totaled 114 goals and 183 assists in 172 games during his three years in junior hockey and played in two world junior championships with Canada. He was MVP of the 2020 tournament, winning a gold medal as team captain.
"Along with the skill, it's his competitiveness. I think if you go back to the world junior and before in Rimouski, right away, you could see he has the kind of talent that we’re all looking for," Rangers general manager Jeff Gorton told NHL Network. "He always drags everyone in the battle with him."
The Los Angeles Kings will draft second and Ottawa Senators third. The Detroit Red Wings, who had the league's worst record, will pick fourth.
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August 11, 2020 at 05:59AM
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New York Rangers win NHL draft lottery, right to choose high-scoring Alexis Lafreniere - USA TODAY
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