Mayweather-Pacquiao bout won't be held at the Sphere on Sept. 19 due to an Eagles concert, putting rematch further in doubt
Mayweather-Pacquiao rematch off for Sept. 19 as Eagles concerts take over the Sphere
The Boston Bruins may still receive a first-round pick from the Toronto Maple Leafs, even if the Leafs retain their pick in the NHL Draft lottery. This situation is due to specific protections in the draft lottery rules.
Boston Bruins center Morgan Geekie (39), goaltender Jeremy Swayman (1), center Fraser Minten (93) and center Alex Steeves (21) head for the locker room after their 4-1 loss to the Buffalo Sabres in game six of the first round of the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs at TD Garden.
Do Bruins still get a pick if Maple Leafs keep their 1st-rounder? Explaining NHL Draft lottery pick protections originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
The Boston Bruins are actually in a really good spot when it comes to the Toronto Maple Leafs' first-round pick that could convey to Boston.
And that's true even if the Leafs keep their pick during Tuesday night's NHL Draft lottery.
The Maple Leafs traded their 2026 first-round pick to Boston in last year's Brandon Carlo deal, but the pick was top-five protected. That means if it's a pick 1-5 in this year's draft, the Leafs keep it.
The Bruins can still receive a first-round pick from the Maple Leafs, depending on the draft lottery protections in place.
NHL Draft lottery pick protections determine whether a team retains or conveys a pick based on specific conditions, impacting teams like the Bruins and Maple Leafs.
The Boston Bruins recently lost to the Buffalo Sabres in the first round of the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Mayweather-Pacquiao rematch off for Sept. 19 as Eagles concerts take over the Sphere
Nebraska volleyball to compete in historic AT&T Stadium event
Pablo Torre wins the 2026 Pulitzer Prize for his investigation into the Clippers' Kawhi Leonard scandal.
Napoli set to make Hojlund's loan permanent for £38m; Chelsea considers Xavi Hernandez as manager.
Brewers vs Cardinals live updates: Rain could disrupt the game tonight
Sixers coach Nick Nurse steps away for brother's funeral after loss to Knicks
See every story in Sports — including breaking news and analysis.
If it falls to Nos. 6 or 7, which is about a 58% combined outcome chance, the Bruins get the pick in the 2026 draft instead of Toronto.
But what happens if the Leafs keep their pick? It's actually not bad news for Boston.
That's the good news: The Bruins get a pick from Toronto no matter what. It's just a matter of which pick.
If it's outside the top-five in 2026, it goes to the Bruins, and that completes the final layer of the Carlo trade.
If it's inside the top-five, the Maple Leafs keep their first-round pick in 2026. But in that scenario, Toronto conveys its 2027 first-rounder to Boston, and that'll be unprotected, meaning it could end up anywhere on the board.
So there's an outcome where the Leafs pick fifth in 2026 but then the Bruins pick even higher in 2027 if Toronto has another bad season.
The Bruins will make a first-round pick thanks to the Carlo trade, and at this point, they're just waiting to see which year it'll come.