The Boston Bruins potentially have helped the Detroit Red Wings’ rebuild.
The first 16 draft spots, which includes the Wings at No. 6, go to the 15 teams that did not advance to the playoffs, and to expansion Seattle.
Playoff teams that did not win the division and failed to make the conference finals — the Capitals check both boxes — will be assigned the spots starting at 17, based on points.
The Capitals finished with 77 points. Entering Monday’s games, they and the St. Louis Blues were the only teams eliminated. The Blues earned 63 points, so the Capitals slot behind them.
Division winners that do not advance to the conference finals slot into the spots 25-28. Conference final losers slot into spots 29 and 30; the Stanley Cup runner-up gets the 31st pick and the champion picks 32nd.