Editor's Note: Sheng Peng will be a regular contributor to NBC Sports California’s Sharks coverage. You can read more of his coverage on San Jose Hockey Now, listen to him on the San Jose Hockey Now Podcast, and follow him on Twitter at @Sheng_Peng.
It would be easy to joke that the San Jose Sharks can’t even lose right.
After all, there’s probably nothing that the last-place Sharks need for their rebuild more than the first-overall pick of the 2024 Draft.
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A 2-1 loss to the second-worst team in the NHL, the Chicago Blackhawks, helps their Draft lottery odds. A 2-1 shootout loss, however, doesn’t help quite as much.
San Jose earned one point, Chicago earned two, and the Hawks are now four points ahead of the cellar-dwelling Sharks.
The worst record in the league has a 25.5 percent chance at the No. 1 pick, while the second-worst has a 13.5.
The San Jose players certainly aren’t laughing though. It’s a reminder that there’s a human cost behind all these numbers.
San Jose Sharks
All the Sharks are wearing the losing, perhaps no one more than 21-year-old William Eklund, who San Jose hopes is the future of the franchise.
“It’s just frustrating because I want us to win. That’s the No. 1 thing,” the emotional winger said about missing an open net scoring chance, hitting the crossbar instead.