Bleacher Report

There isn't much still to be decided during the 2021-22 NHL regular season. In the Eastern Conference, it's already known which eight teams are heading to the playoffs. As for the Western Conference, seven teams are battling for the final four postseason berths. So 13 NHL teams that have been eliminated from playoff contention, meaning they can focus on the future, starting with the 2022 NHL draft, which is set to take place July 7 and 8 at the Bell Centre in Montreal. Before then, the draft lottery will be held, although a date has not yet been set. That will determine the draft order for the 16 non-playoff teams. And whichever team ends up at No. 1 will get to pick from the talented pool of available players in this year's class.