If the Ottawa Senators aren't planning on keeping the fourth overall pick in the 2018 NHL Draft, they certainly aren't letting on.
The Senators were allocated the No. 4 selection at Saturday's draft lottery, and while the team was hoping to move up, it is not disappointed with how things turned out.
"We knew our highest odds were [on] having the fourth pick," Ottawa general manager Pierre Dorion told TSN. "We think Top 4 is pretty special and we know that that player has a very good chance of playing for us next year, so we're pretty excited about that."
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If the Senators choose to keep the No. 4 pick in June's draft, they'll be forced to lose their first-round selection in 2019 as a condition of the trade that saw forward Matt Duchene join Ottawa from the Colorado Avalanche in November. While Dorion wouldn't confirm the team's plans, he said it was "most likely" that the Senators "will be keeping the pick."
"We feel very fortunate to be picking No. 4, and that's a product of having not a very good season this year," Dorion said. "At the same time we feel that that pick will be important for our franchise."
Should Ottawa hold on to the fourth overall selection, it will have two picks in the opening round as the team also owns the Penguins' natural first-round pick as the result of the Derick Brassard trade. It's a situation that Dorion feels could be advantageous for the Senators.
"Having two first-rounders in a very deep draft is something that can be very beneficial for our organization in the short, medium and long term," he said.