Maple Leafs history with No. 1 overall pick
Toronto has been here before, but not often.
Maple Leafs history with No. 1 overall pick originally appeared on The Sporting News . Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here .
The Toronto Maple Leafs have been here before, although not all that often. The Leafs won the NHL Draft lottery on Tuesday night to earn the No. 1 overall pick in the 2026 NHL Draft.
It'll be the third time they have the first pick in the draft. Both of the first two instances worked out quite nicely, so the Leafs will be hoping that's the case again. The expectation is that Gavin McKenna will be the favorite for that slot, but the pre-draft process could always shift that by the time the Maple Leafs are officially on the clock.
This is a quick look at how that slot has worked out for them before. MORE: Sabres' storybook season is real, and Stanley Cup dreams are valid Maple Leafs history with No. 1 overall pick The Maple Leafs have had the first overall pick twice before.