The San Jose Sharks have won the first overall pick in the 2024 NHL lottery and expect to select Macklin Celebrini.

Sharks general manager Mike Grier indicated that his team would select Celebrini with the first overall pick.

"I would think so," he said. "It wasn't an easy year, but this was a real nice prize for us."

The Sharks finished last in the overall standings (19-54-9) and retained their position in the lottery. San Jose had an 18.5% chance to win the lottery and a 25.5% chance to pick first.

Celebrini, a Vancouver native, has ties to the Bay Area. He's the son of Rick Celebrini, the Golden State Warriors vice president of player health and performance. Macklin lived in the San Jose area and played for the San Jose Junior Sharks 14U AAA team.

The order of selection for the first 16 picks of the First Round, only, of the 2024 NHL Draft is as follows:

1. San Jose Sharks

2. Chicago Blackhawks

3. Anaheim Ducks

4. Columbus Blue Jackets

5. Montreal Canadiens

6. Utah

7. Ottawa Senators

8. Seattle Kraken

9. Calgary Flames

10. New Jersey Devils

11. Buffalo Sabres

12. Philadelphia Flyers

13. Minnesota Wild

14. San Jose Sharks (from Pittsburgh)

15. Detroit Red Wings

16. St. Louis Blues

Auston Matthews, Nathan MacKinnon and Nikita Kucherov were named finalists for the Ted Lindsay Award on Wednesday.

Voted on by fellow members of the NHL Players' Association, it is presented annually to the most outstanding player in the NHL.

Vegas Golden Knights defenseman Brayden McNabb was asked Tuesday if he could imagine not having Jonathan Marchessault in the club's locker room next season.

"No," he said succinctly, letting that word hang in the air before fully answering the question two days after the Golden Knights were eliminated in the first round of the NHL playoffs by Dallas.

Colorado Avalanche center Nathan MacKinnon, Edmonton Oilers center Connor McDavid and Tampa Bay Lightning winger Nikita Kucherov are the finalists for the 2023-24 Hart Memorial Trophy, given to the player "adjudged to be the most valuable to his team" in the regular season.

The winner is selected by the Professional Hockey Writers Association.

The St. Louis Blues took the interim tag off of Drew Bannister's title, naming him their new head coach.

Bannister, 50, signed a two-year contract, according to Blues president of hockey operations and general manager Doug Armstrong. He becomes the 27th head coach in franchise history.

The Ottawa Senators hired Travis Green to a four-year contract to serve as head coach through the 2027-28 season, it was announced Tuesday.

He is expected to be formally introduced during a news conference in Ottawa on Wednesday.

"After speaking to several highly qualified candidates, it became clear that Travis is the right fit to lead our group," Senators president of hockey operations Steve Staios said in a statement. "As we've routinely stated, developing a winning culture is paramount to our aspiration of achieving sustained success. Travis has a burning desire to win, is passionate about teaching and holds his players to a very high standard."

Los Angeles Kings general manager Rob Blake said that the team will not buy out the contract of maligned star center Pierre-Luc Dubois, who struggled in his first season with the team.

The Kings acquired Dubois from the Winnipeg Jets in a blockbuster trade last June. Los Angeles sent forwards Alex Iafallo, Rasmus Kupari and Gabriel Vilardi and a 2024 second-round pick for Dubois, who was signed to an 8-year, $68 million contract ($8.5 million average annual value) that kicked in this season.

Winnipeg Jets coach Rick Bowness has retired after spending 38 seasons behind an NHL bench, the team announced Monday.

The 69-year-old Bowness is retiring after having one of the best seasons of his career. He guided the Jets to a 52-win campaign that saw them finish with 110 points before they lost in the Western Conference quarterfinal round to the Colorado Avalanche in five games.

Seeing their bid for a consecutive Stanley Cup end in the first round wasn't the only pain the Vegas Golden Knights felt this postseason.

Coach Bruce Cassidy said there were nine players who went through surgeries this season, the second-year bench boss shared Sunday after his team's 2-1 loss to the Dallas Stars in Game 7 of the Western Conference quarterfinals.

"Nine guys. Your roster is only 23, so nine players," Cassidy explained. "Two of them internal surgeries. You never know how those are going to play out. Some other ones were a little more defined, but I give our guys a lot of credit."

Toronto Maple Leafs star forward Auston Matthews was named a finalist for the Lady Byng Trophy on Saturday.

It marks the third time that Matthews has been a finalist for the award, which is presented annually to the player voted to best combine sportsmanship, gentlemanly conduct and ability as voted on by the Professional Hockey Writers Association.

Vancouver Canucks forward Elias Pettersson and Carolina Hurricanes defenseman Jaccob Slavin also were named finalists.