I can't re-call a year where this much attention was paid by fans and media alike to the NHL's annual Draft Lottery. Never has it even been close. There are a couple reasons I can cite as a basis for all the hoopla. One - John Tavares is an appealing prospect. Perhaps Canada's most appealing since Sidney Crosby, and even Crosby's draft year didn't have this much Lottery talk prefacing it because of the lockout. Two - A couple of the teams that are in the running for the top pick are situated in Ontario, North America's hotbed for hockey-related media.
It was not too long ago that a springtime playoff encounter between the Senators and Maple Leafs was almost automatic, something everyone except Patrick Lalime could get excited about. These days, its not uncommon to have Sens fans cheering on the Leafs, and Leafs fans cheering on the Sens. As crazy as it sounds, you people know its been happening since October. I've sat through countless chats, listening to ignorant fans blather on about how last night's come from behind Leafs victory (and there has been a lot of those this season) was a waste of time... completely useless... futile even. Fear not true fans, these are same people who are in love with fantasy hockey, not real hockey. And Kyle Wellwood. Anyone who thinks teams should be, or are, out on the ice losing on purpose hasn't ever played anything at a competitive level. What's more, is they don't make an effort to understand the world of professional sports either.
The players and coaches want to win. The players and coaches are competitive. It doesn't matter what the expectations for their teams are, or what percentage of a chance they have at drafting John Tavares. Presently, the Islanders have the best odds, at 25%. That hasn't stopped them from going 6-2-2 in their last 10 games. It also hasn't stopped Sean Bergenheim, one of their best players, from being one of the best players in the entire league over the last 14 days. Second in the hunt are the Thrashers. No wait, the Lightning. It was the Thrashers, until they strung together some wins and passed Tampa Bay in the standings. They too appear to be interested more in winning than draft position. Colorado and Phoenix are in the mix too. And maybe they'll lose more games than they win down the stretch to move up a position or two in the draft. But one thing is for certain, they won't lose on purpose. Nor should they. Anyone suggesting otherwise should be reprimanded accordingly. Maybe we could arrange for them to get an earful from Ron Wilson.
This is an honorable mention to the relentless efforts of professional athletes and the never quit attitude that separates them from the amateurs. It is a quality that is often taken for granted. Draft schmaft said Cliff Fletcher many years ago. A shared sentiment amongst the seven teams battling not to finish last, but to stay out of last. Pride is hard to swallow.
1 comment:
People don't realize that players are constantly selling themselves. No player is going to tank for the last 20 games on purpose and ruin screwing themselves over when their next contract negotiations come up.
However, I think there's an issue with the lottery in that you can only move up 4 spots, so the very last place team is unduly rewarded. The Islanders would have something closer to a 49% chance if the season ended today, due to the fact that if any team 6th-14th wins the lottery, the last place team holds on to the top pick. So, while the difference between finishing 28th and 29th only changes your chances 4%, the difference between finishing 29th and 30th changes your chance at the #1 pick somewhere around 30%.
Such a system does create an undue reward for finishing dead last, and is what gives way to the discussion of tanking late-season. Why not just include the bottom five teams and split up the balls accordingly? Or, include all non-playoff teams, and if the 14th place team is lucky enough to win with only 0.5% of the balls, they're lucky enough to get the first pick. This creates a system where there is ultimately no incentive to tank, as a few losses won't have a huge effect in your chances.
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