The 2026 Draft Lottery Is Almost Here, And It Means Absolutely Nothing For the Columbus Blue Jackets

The 2026 NHL Draft Lottery is tomorrow, May 5th, and will air on ESPN at 7 PM Eastern.

The Columbus Blue Jackets are scheduled to pick #14 overall, just like in 2025. Much to the delight of the team and fans, Jackson Smith was an excellent pick after seeing what he did during his freshman season at Penn State. But don’t get used to that, because it won’t happen every year. The Jackets were slated to pick #13, but “fell” to 14.

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This year it’s the same situation. They will pick #14 but will have a 1.5% chance to move up to as high as #4 in the draft. That 1.5% might as well be 0%, because it’s not happening. They could actually fall to 15, which will most likely happen.

Last year, upstart Utah was allowed to move up to 4 from 14, much to the dismay of many other teams. If you subscribe to conspiracy theories, this is your chance to puff out your chest just a little bit.

The New York Islanders also jumped from 10 to 1 to secure the services of Matthew Schaefer, which again drew the ire of the teams that earned the top overall pick. Again, conspiracy theorists, stand up!

For the last few years, the NHL Draft Lottery has meant something to the Columbus Blue Jackets and their fans. Even though it was almost a given that they would fall in the draft order, they watched and begged for a miracle, which never came. The only miracle came when the Ducks picked Leo Carlsson instead of Adam Fantilli, which allowed the CBJ to pick him at #3.

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Even though fans have suffered through several rough seasons, the NHL hasn’t allowed this franchise to profit from its misery. Will that ever change?

This year will be just like last year, unfortunately. Sadly, it’ll just be another day to watch a team win the lottery, who has either already won it in the last couple of years, or it will go to a team that happened to have a bad season randomly.

So, will you watch the Draft Lottery, or will you be partaking in the Cinco De Mayo celebration? Will you be doing both? Many fans of Columbus will torture themselves and watch as a team like Toronto, who missed the playoffs for the first time since 2016, win the NHL Lottery.

Or will it be Florida, which, due to injuries, has the 8th-best odds to win the lottery? Let me remind you that they are the two-time defending cup champs and went to three straight finals.

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What about Chicago? Would the NHL allow them to draft yet another generational talent, just three years after Connor Bedard?

Of course, the CBJ could trade that pick to move up in the draft, or they could trade it to bring in roster-ready players. But that was the case last year, too, and they got absolutely zero traction from it. So, expect them to make the pick.

Get your popcorn ready if you plan to watch, because someone is going to get their feelings hurt tomorrow.