Since the world was put on hold, it seems everything is now happening in phases. The 2020 NHL Draft Lottery will be no different, with a usual 15-team draw taking place first, and potentially a second event several weeks later.
The reason for the new procedure is the NHL’s 24-team playoff format that will have some of those 15 teams vying for spots in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. The goal is to keep the process as close to the normal plan as possible, while also trying to maintain the integrity of a qualification series to determine the final four seeds in each conference.