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These Three Things Can Mess up the Chicago Blackhawks’ Chances To Land the No. 1 Overall Pick Again

By Todd Welter |
/ Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports
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The Chicago Blackhawks have lost seven of their last ten while the San Jose Sharks have won three straight. What that means is the Hawks are now back at the top of the Tankathon.com/NHL standings giving the team the best odds of landing the No. 1 overall pick again.

This year's prize for winning the NHL Draft Lottery is Boston University's Macklin Celebrini. He is regarded as a generational talent just like Connor Bedard was in last year's draft.

Before you go and start fantasizing about the Blackhawks adding another rookie phenom, you should know a couple of things that could keep that from becoming a reality...

Teams behind the Blackhawks could trade off assets before the NHL trade deadline much like the Hawks did last year.

The Hawks traded away Patrick Kane, Max Domi, and any other player that could fetch the franchise a draft pick before last season's March 2nd trade deadline. The result was the Blackhawks won just five games the rest of the season.

The Blackhawks do not have much to trade away this go around, so it is not like they can tank on purpose. Other teams can trade away assets to help their tank odds.

The Sharks have three players in the Athletic's top 30 possible players available on the trade market (subscription required). Calgary could get significantly worse if they move Elias Lindstrom, Chris Tanev, and Noah Hanifrin. Montreal might also have a fire sale to send their season into a tailspin.

The Anaheim Ducks and Columbus Blue Jackets are nipping at the Hawks' heels in the tank standings. They can trade away some players that could make them even worse too.

Injuries could devastate the Ducks, Sharks, or the Blue Jackets like it has done to the Blackhawks.

The Blackhawks came into this season as a team with fringe playoff hopes. The roster was not exactly filled with a lot of high-end talent, but if the Hawks could stay healthy, they could be competitive. At the very least, it was a roster that would not contend for having the best lottery odds.

Then the injury bug bit and it bit hard.

That is a big reason the Blackhawks are currently at the bottom of the NHL standings. The Chicago Blackhawks currently have the most players on injured reserve. At one point in December, the Hawks had to roll out a blue line you would normally expect to see in Rockford (the team's AHL affiliate if you are scoring at home).

Then earlier this month, the forward position was ravaged by injuries to the point where the Hawks have had to trade for the likes of Rem Pitlick and claim Zach Sanford off of waivers. Those two moves were the equivalent of being desperate enough just to have warm bodies on the ice who can at least play something close to a professional game. Otherwise, Pitlick and Sanford would be in the AHL somewhere.

The Ducks currently have three players on IR, Columbus has none, and San Jose is banged up but still enough to tread water. All it takes is a rash of injuries to make these bad teams even worse.

Connor Bedard eventually returning to the ice.

The rookie phenom is one of the Hawks players currently on injured reserve with a fractured jaw. The offense has suffered as a result. Now the offense was bad with Bedard in the lineup, but he was at least a threat to score every time he was on the ice. Plus, the Hawks did not need to have everything perfect on an offensive play to have a shot at scoring a goal.

With Bedard out, getting the puck in the back of the net has been laborious. The Blackhawks have been shut out three times since he was placed on injured reserve after the New Jersey Devils game in late December. They have had four games where the team has scored only one goal in regulation or overtime.

The Hawks have been blanked just three times in the 39 games Bedard skated this season. There have been just 10 games where the Hawks have only had one goal with Bedard in the lineup.

His return should spark the offense to at least put some pucks past the opposing goaltender. That does not mean the Hawks will necessarily win, but there have been games since he has been out where the offense is just not giving this team a chance to win.

The offensive effort is there as the players are no longer just standing around watching Bedard. Imagine if the rest of the team plays with same intensity it has had since Bedard went out with Connor on the ice. That should give the Blackhawks a chance to win some games.

Tyler Johnson's and Anthony Beauvillier's eventual return to the ice should also boost the team's scoring attack. It might not be a huge boost, but it would be better to have them shooting than Pitlick.

Remember, all the Hawks have is a great chance to win the NHL Draft Lottery. It does not mean they will win it. Plus, we have a long way to go, and as you can see a lot of factors can determine what the Blackhawks' final chances are.

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