Both the fates of Macklin Celebrini and the San Jose Sharks were decided Tuesday night by the bounce of a lottery ball. While no announcement has been made by the team, GM Mike Grier didn't make it a secret about how much they like Celebrini and how excited they'll be to now have the right to select the wire-to-wire consensus No. 1 prospect at the 2024 NHL Draft in Las Vegas June 28. 

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Celebrini, who played some for the San Jose Jr. Sharks, will be close to his parents who live in the Bay Area as dad Rick works with the Golden State Warriors in the NBA.

Now that we essentially know where Celebrini is going. We also know the order of the next 15 selections in the draft after No. 1. While there is going to be debate in scouting rooms and much scrutiny on video and at the NHL Scouting Combine to go before we have a better idea of how the picture shakes out, this is my best guess in the immediate aftermath of the lottery of how the draft would go if it happened today.

I spent the last two weeks in Finland at the 2024 IIHF World Men’s Under-18 Championship chatting with scouts and execs and while no one truly tips their hand all the way, hopefully some of that chatter guided my picks below.

So let’s dive in. Here is my very first post-NHL Draft lottery Mock Draft. Stay tuned for full Mock Draft 1.0 in the coming weeks as well as a few more updates as we get closer to the draft day that will feature all 32 first-round selection and a two-round mock in the weeks leading up to the draft.

2024 NHL Mock Draft -- Post-Lottery Edition

No. 1 San Jose Sharks -- Macklin Celebrini, C, Boston University

The dream scenario after a nightmare season came to fruition for the Sharks as they'll get a young man who played some of his youth hockey in the Bay Area to be the next face of their franchise. Celebrini is the no-doubt pick as Mike Grier didn't even hide his excitement about taking Celebrini specifically. He will be the cornerstone of a prospect system that also includes the highly-talented Will Smith from Boston College.

No. 2 Chicago Blackhawks -- Ivan Demidov, RW, SKA St. Petersburg 

The Blackhawks really have two ways to go with this pick I think. They can nab the right-shot defenseman their system lacks in Artyom Levshunov, or they can continue to build up their forward group with another high-end scorer to complement Connor Bedard. This is a hugely important pick for this franchise, but I think the big swing here is to take Demidov and add another cornerstone piece to the rebuild. Demidov is under contract for one more season in the KHL and I would do everything in my power to make sure that is his last season in Russia.

No. 3 Anaheim Ducks -- Artyom Levshunov, RHD, Michigan State

The Ducks have significantly bolstered their forward group over the last few seasons with drafting Leo Carlsson and trading for Cutter Gauthier. What they could use now in their system is a right-shot defenseman. Levshunov is the perfect fit as a true two-way defenseman with size and enough jam to handle the battles Anaheim will face in the Pacific Division.

No. 4 Columbus Blue Jackets -- Anton Silayev, LHD, Torpedo

The Blue Jackets have plenty of needs in their system despite some solid drafting the last few years. I think they've got some nice defensemen of the future in David Jiricek and Denton Mateychuk, who are right and left shots, respectively. The upside Silayev has, however, could allow him to be the No. 1 defenseman for this group. He is 6-foot-7, rangey and just figuring out how to use that frame of his. There's physicality and skill in his game that I think the Jackets would have to consider.

No. 5 Montreal Canadiens -- Cayden Lindstrom, C, Medicine Hat Tigers

The Habs could go in a lot of different directions here as there are going to be some very good defensemen still on the board. Lindstrom might be one of the riskier choices here, but I also think the upside is what will entice the Habs. If they believe Lindstrom is a long-term center, he would allow them to get bigger down the middle. Lindstrom also has some good quickness, hand skills and scoring touch. There is some legitimate concern about injuries he's battled this season which will need to be investigated, but I think the size, physicality and, the skill he can bring to the table would really add another dimension to Montreal's forward lineup.

No. 6 Utah Hockey Club -- Sam Dickinson, LHD, London Knights

Size clearly mattered to this hockey ops group during the last draft when they nabbed big players in Dmitri Simashev and Daniil But in the first round, and they can continue that trend with 6-foot-3 athlete Sam Dickinson. Not only is he big, he produced at a big level in the OHL this season. He is one of just two OHL defensemen in league history at 6-foot-3 or taller to put up 70 points in his U18 season. There's some legitimate hockey sense concerns with him that will need to be smoothed out, but I think the tools are very enticing to line him up on the back end.

No. 7 Ottawa Senators -- Zayne Parekh, RHD, Saginaw Spirit

I think the run on defensemen continues here as Parekh gives the Senators something they haven't really had since Erik Karlsson was around -- a legitimate offensive, point-producing defenseman. I think either Parekh or Zeev Buium makes sense here, but as a Canadian team, I'd probably pick a Canadian player for the best long-term success of hanging on to him. He had 96 points in the OHL this year, the most ever in the OHL by a draft-eligible defenseman since 1989-90.

No. 8 Seattle Kraken -- Zeev Buium, LHD, Denver

This is the part of the draft where we start splitting hairs a little bit because I think there are a lot of similar values. The Kraken have gone heavy on forwards in their draft classes and I don't think they have a game-changing defenseman. Buium could be it. He's a dynamic offensive player who just had the best draft-eligible season by a NCAA defenseman pretty much ever. He has good skating ability and if the Kraken need evidence of why having a dynamic element on the back end matters, just look an hour north to Vancouver. I don't know if Buium will be at Quinn Hughes's level as a pro, but he outperformed him as an NCAA freshman.

No. 9 Calgary Flames -- Konsta Helenius, C, Jukurit

The Flames have a lot of needs long-term, but I think they can address a pretty important one at center. Helenius is 5-11, but strong and has good two-way capability. He's not far from NHL ready after posting the fourth-most productive U18 season in Liiga history, trailing Aleksander Barkov, Mikael Granlund and Kaapo Kakko. He is currently playing on Finland's senior national team at the Men's World Championship. I'm sure they will be tempted to take Tij Iginla here, but I also don't know if that's the best long-term move for the team.

No. 10 New Jersey Devils -- Tij Iginla, RW, Kelowna Rockets

The Devils have spent so many picks on defensemen of late, I'd have to think they're going to be looking at forwards. In this range, there are good option and if I were them I'd probably pick Berkly Catton here, but that would be another sub-6-foot center. So I'm looking at the wing and taking a swing on the highly-skilled Iginla, who has a good work ethic, quick hands and a deadly shot. He does a lot of things well and just won gold with Canada at the U18 Worlds where the Devils had a big contingent in tow.

No. 11 Buffalo Sabres -- Berkly Catton, C, Spokane Chiefs

I don't know if the Sabres are going to go for another undersized forward here after picking Zach Benson and Matt Savoie, but I think Catton might be the best of all three. He has speed and dynamic skills that allow him to produce off the rush. His ability to make plays in transition would go a long way to helping the Sabres maximize the quality of their puck-moving defensemen. I think they might have to make some changes to their system to add some size up front among their top prospects, but this is a great haul in the range they are in.

No. 12 Philadelphia Flyers -- Carter Yakemchuk, D, Calgary HItmen

A big right-shot defenseman who can move pucks and score goals would be an exciting addition to the Flyers system. Even though they have Cam York and Jamie Drysdale, Yakemchuk gives them a little more size. He's a great skater and can move pucks efficiently. He scored 30 goals in the WHL this year.

No. 13 Minnesota Wild -- Beckett Sennecke, RW, Oshawa Generals

Sennecke has been one of the fastest rising prospects of the season. His performance in the OHL playoffs has caught everyone by surprise. He's a 6-foot-2 scorer who can make plays ont he interior. The Wild have a lot of needs and I think they're going to fall just outside of the range to nab a higher-end defenseman to keep building their blue line around Brock Faber.

No. 14 San Jose Sharks (via PIT) -- Cole Eiserman, RW, U.S. National Team Development Program

Celebrini and Eiserman are close friends and former teammates from Shattuck-St. Mary's. I don't think this reunion would be ill placed and I think this is good value for Eiserman, whose draft stock has slipped. He just set the NTDP's career record for goals with 127 over two seasons. He's a legit sniper and with the playmakers San Jose has lined up including last year's top pick Will Smith, Eiserman could do a lot of damage with those guys.

No. 15 Detroit Red Wings -- Igor Chernyshov, RW, Dynamo Moscow

The Red Wings have made some picks on players that had lower-upside, but higher floors in the last few years. I think it would be fun to see them take a swing on Chernyshov, who is a 6-foot-2 forward with a lot of skill. His numbers don't pop out because he was used sparingly in the KHL, but the tape on him is pretty fun to watch and I think the Wings could stand to add scoring. Chernyshov has one more year left on his KHL contract before he could potentially come over.

No. 16 St. Louis Blues -- Michael Brandsegg-Nygard, RW, Mora

This guy just seems like he plays St. Louis Blues hockey already. The Norwegian winger plays with a lot of jam and will be taking on a big role with his senior national team at Men's World Championship. Brandsegg-Nygard has a good shot and decent enough hands even though I don't know that he'll score at a superstar level. I do think he plays the right way and will endear himself to the culture the Blues established in their Stanley Cup year that they're trying to recapture.

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