The Weekly Macklin Celebrini Watch: The Chicago Blackhawks No Longer In The Lead For Best NHL Draft Lottery Odds

The Chicago Blackhawks have won three of four games and have tumbled out of the top spot in the Tankathon.com/NHL standings.

The Hawks even picked up a 5-2 victory over the San Jose Sharks, who are currently at the bottom of the NHL standings, during that stretch.

For those of you tired of seeing the Blackhawks being the worst team in the league, this is welcomed news. To those being mindful of the big picture, you might be upset that the Hawks won the Macklin Celebrini Bowl again.

It is not like the Sharks are not contributing to this. They traded away key players at the trade deadline and have lost four straight. That combination has given the Sharks the tentative best odds to land the No. 1 overall pick and the draft Boston University's Macklin Celebrini.

The man is a goal-scoring machine. He picked up his 30th goal of the season last Saturday in the Terriers' 4-2 victory over Northeastern.

He will be back in action this Friday when BU faces Maine in the Hockey East Tournament semifinals.

Can the Blackhawks regain the top spot this week?

If you want the Hawks to tank for the top spot, this week is a good chance for the Blackhawks to not win. They go on the road this week for three games on the West Coast.

The Hawks have only one road game victory since November. They have to play the Los Angeles Kings on Tuesday. The Kings pummeled the Hawks 5-0 last Friday.

The Hawks then go to Anaheim on Thursday. Although, the Hawks beat them pretty handidly last Tuesday 7-2. The Blackhawks wrap up the road stand at San Jose on Saturday.

The Sharks have a four-point lead in the race to the bottom, so the Blackhawks need them to pick up some victories not only over them this week, but also over the Nashville Predators on Tuesday in Nashville and the Tampa Bay Lightning at home on Thursday.

Should we worry if the Blackhawks do not end the season with the least amount of points in the standings?

No, remember the Blackhawks did not have the best odds of winning the draft lottery last year, and they ended up with the No. 1 overall pick. While you would want the most ping-pong balls in the hopper to have history repeat itself, it is not like the Blackhawks do not already have a generational talent in Bedard.

Sure, having both Celebrini and Bedard would turn the franchise's fortunes around quickly. At the same time, there are some really talented prospects at the top of the draft that can help the Hawks down the road too if the Hawks do not get the No. 1 overall pick.

How did Blackhawks prospect and Celebrini's teammate, Ryan Greene do last week?

Greene picked up an assist on Boston's first goal.

Setting up his teammates for goals is what Greene does best. He now has 22 assists on the season along with nine goals.