2015 NHL Draft Order: Full 1st-Round Selection List and Updated Mock Draft

You have to say this for the Edmonton Oilers: They haven't found success on the ice recently, but they've apparently cracked the code that is the NHL draft lottery.

The Oilers won the lottery Saturday night, which means they'll own the first overall pick in the 2015 draft, per the NHL.

With the completion of the lottery, the first 14 picks of the first round are locked in, and the next 16 finalized at the conclusion of the Stanley Cup playoffs.

Most NHL followers agree that the top four players in this year's draft pool are Connor McDavid, Dylan Strome, Jack Eichel and Noah Hanifin. McDavid is almost universally regarded as the No. 1 pick, while Strome, Eichel and Hanifin have positioned themselves among the remaining elite.

The nature of the first round remains somewhat amorphous until the postseason is over, but the completion of the lottery makes it a little easier to project how the first 30 picks will unfold.

Pick	Team	Player
1	Edmonton Oilers	Connor McDavid, C, Erie (OHL)
2	Buffalo Sabres	Jack Eichel, C, Boston Univ. (H-EAST)
3	Arizona Coyotes	Dylan Strome, C, Erie (OHL)
4	Toronto Maple Leafs	Noah Hanifin, D, Boston College (H-EAST)
5	Carolina Hurricanes	Mitchell Marner, C, London (OHL)
6	New Jersey Devils	Lawson Crouse, LW, Kingston (OHL)
7	Philadelphia Flyers	Mikko Rantanen, RW, TPS (FIN)
8	Columbus Blue Jackets	Ivan Provorov, D, Brandon (WHL)
9	San Jose Sharks	Pavel Zacha, C, Sarnia (OHL)
10	Colorado Avalanche	Mathew Barzal, C, Seattle (WHL)
11	Florida Panthers	Zachary Werenski, D, Michigan (Big Ten)
12	Dallas Stars	Kyle Connor, LW, Youngstown (USHL)
13	Los Angeles Kings	Jakub Zboril, D, Saint John (QMJHL)
14	Boston Bruins	Timo Meier, RW, Halifax (QMJHL)
15	Calgary Flames	Thomas Chabot, D, Saint John (QMJHL)
16	Edmonton Oilers (from PIT)	Travis Konecny, C, Ottawa (OHL)
17	Winnipeg Jets	Jansen Harkins, C, Prince George (WHL)
18	Ottawa Senators	Jeremy Roy, D, Sherbrooke (QMJHL)
19	Detroit Red Wings	Evgeny Svechnikov, LW, Cape Breton (QMJHL)
20	Minnesota Wild	Nicholas Merkley, RW, Kelowna (WHL)
21	Buffalo Sabres (from NYI)	Jake DeBrusk, LW, Swift Current (WHL)
22	Washington Capitals	Filip Chlapik, C, Charlottetown (QMJHL)
23	Vancouver Canucks	Daniel Sprong, RW, Charlottetown (QMJHL)
24	Arizona Coyotes (from CHI)	Brandon Carlo, D, Tri-City (WHL)
25	Nashville Predators	Noah Juulsen, D, Everett (WHL)
26	Philadelphia Flyers (from TB)	Paul Bittner, LW, Portland (WHL)
27	Winnipeg Jets (from BUF via STL)	Ryan Pilon, D, Brandon (WHL)
28	Anaheim Ducks	Colin White, C, USA U-18 (USHL)
29	Montreal Canadiens	Vince Dunn, D, Niagara (OHL)
30	Tampa Bay Lightning (from NYR)	Brock Boeser, Waterloo, USHL

2015 NHL Draft Top Players Available

No. 1, Edmonton Oilers: Connor McDavid, C, Erie (OHL)

The Oilers find themselves in a familiar position with the No. 1 overall pick. According to SportsCenter, Edmonton has now owned the first pick in four of the last six seasons.

Oilers assistant general manager Bill Scott remains confident the franchise will avoid making past mistakes and turn the No. 1 pick into something tangible years later, per Edmonton's Twitter account:

Many remain skeptical given the team's inability to build a winner despite hoarding so many top picks. ESPN's Bill Simmons is already envisioning ways McDavid can get out of Edmonton:

McDavid is so advanced offensively, and it's more than simply his puck skills and athleticism. The 18-year-old is wise beyond his years on the ice. He reads the game so well and knows how and when to get into the right positions.

In a way, this might be the ultimate test of the Oilers' incompetence. McDavid is considered to be a can't-miss prospect. A team would have to go out of its way to hinder his development and prevent him from being a star.

No. 2, Buffalo Sabres: Jack Eichel, C, Boston University

Winslow Townson-USA TODAY Sports

Buffalo Sabres general manager Tim Murray couldn't hide his dissatisfaction with the lottery results and the whole process in general Saturday, per Mike Harrington of The Buffalo News:

The Sabres entered with the best chances (20 percent) of winning the lottery, but they're stuck with the No. 2 pick.

Admittedly, the chance to draft Eichel is a pretty good backup plan. Sports Illustrated's Richard Deitsch thinks that Buffalo won't be any worse off with Eichel instead of McDavid:

The 18-year-old is coming off a great season with the Boston University Terriers. In 38 games, he scored 24 goals and recorded 43 assists. He also helped Boston reach its first Frozen Four since 2009.

Even if Eichel doesn't reach the heights of McDavid, we're talking about a potential perennial All-Star. A points title could be in his future as well.

Now, there's some doubt as to whether Eichel will turn pro next year, per Brian Koziol of WGR 550:

Even if Eichel returns to college, the Sabres wouldn't lose his draft rights, so that wouldn't present a serious problem.

Sure, losing out on McDavid is disappointing, but Saturday wasn't the end of the world for Buffalo.

No. 3, Arizona Coyotes: Dylan Strome, C, Erie (OHL)

As much as things stink for Buffalo, at least the Sabres have the No. 2 overall pick. The Arizona Coyotes lost not only a chance to draft McDavid, but they're out of the Eichel sweepstakes as well. Coyotes co-owner Anthony LeBlanc felt the blow was extremely harsh, per Craig Morgan of Fox Sports Arizona:

Arizona is pretty much choosing between Strome and Hanifin. If the Coyotes want the best player available, they should probably take Hanifin. If they want to address a need, then Strome is their guy.

There's no reason to believe that Oliver Ekman-Larsson will fall off a cliff in terms of talent and production, so a top-end defenseman might not be a necessity for Phoenix is. A skilled center is, however.

In 68 games for the Erie Otters last year, Strome amassed an impressive 129 points (45 G, 84 A). He's still a bit raw, but all of the tools are there for a franchise forward.

Mitchell Marner could also be at play here if the Coyotes are determined to pick a center, but Strome seems the better option.

No. 4, Toronto Maple Leafs: Noah Hanifin, D, Boston College

There's a chance that the Toronto Maple Leafs could go with Marner. The 18-year-old is the total package on the offensive end. He's very creative with the puck, equally adept at setting up his teammates to score as he is at scoring himself.

Ultimately, Toronto will go with Hanifin, who is probably the better overall player. The Boston College Eagles star is a threat at both ends of the ice, and he shouldn't have many problems in terms of balancing his offensive and defensive duties. He had five goals and 18 assists this past year.

Like Eichel, though, Hanifin is weighing whether or not to return to college, per TSN's Mark Masters:

Perhaps another year at BC would help Hanifin even more finely tune his offensive game, which would only be a good thing for Toronto.

The Maple Leafs can't go too wrong with either Marner or Hanifin, but Hanifin might offer the higher ceiling, which should give him the edge.