Flames give up 12th overall pick to Islanders; season not a total disaster

It’s okay. We’re okay.

When the Calgary Flames traded their 2018 first round pick to the New York Islanders as part of a package for Travis Hamonic, they did not protect the pick in case of winning the lottery. After all, why would they? They were supposed to contend for a Stanley Cup this season, and hubris is a dangerous thing.

Fortunately, the Flames’ pick did not win the lottery after all. They have given up the 12th overall pick to the Islanders, and we can all exhale.

The teams that did win the draft lottery were the Carolina Hurricanes, Montreal Canadiens, and Buffalo Sabres. Buffalo was the worst team in the NHL, while Montreal was fourth worst, so no real big upsets there.

The Hurricanes, though? They were in line to pick 11th overall, finishing with 83 points – to the Flames’ 84. So, great win over Vegas in the regular season finale, eh?

The Flames, at this time, have four picks in this draft: two fourth rounders, a sixth rounder, and a seventh.