2023 NHL Draft odds: Adam Fantilli, Leo Carlsson, Will Smith favored exact order behind expected Blackhawks No. 1 pick Connor Bedard

The last major NHL event before free agency opens Saturday is the 2023 draft, which begins Wednesday night in Nashville – and there are likely to be plenty of trades ahead of and during tonight's first round. We know the Chicago Blackhawks aren't trading the No. 1 overall pick, as it's such a sure thing they will take generational prospect Connor Bedard that you can't even bet on it. However, FanDuel expects the next three picks in order to be: Adam Fantilli, Leo Carlsson and Will Smith. That 2-3-4 exacta pays +100.

Anaheim finished with the fewest points in the 2022-23 regular season and had the best chance to win the lottery, but finished second in a year in which finishing second hurts more than most -- Bedard is considered the best prospect since Connor McDavid, who won his third Hart Trophy on Monday night and is already favored to win a fourth next summer.

The Ducks pick second, and that Fantilli goes there is a -550 heavy favorite. He helped lead the University of Michigan to the national title game as a freshman this past season and won the Hobey Baker Award, which is college hockey's version of the Heisman Trophy. He also won Tim Taylor National Rookie of the Year, Big Ten Freshman of the Year and was first-team All-American. Fantilli led Division I with 65 points.

There have been just two other players to win the Hobey Baker Award as a freshman: Jack Eichel and Paul Kariya, the Ducks' first-ever superstar and a member of the Hockey Hall of Fame. It would be a shock if Fantilli, ranked as the No. 2 North American skater behind Bedard, doesn't become a Duck on Wednesday.

The 19-year-old Carlsson played professionally last season for Orebro in Sweden and had 10 goals and 15 assists in 44 games. He's ranked as the No. 1 international skater and had a strong showing at the 2023 World Juniors, helping Sweden to a fourth-place finish. Carlsson is +400 to be chosen second and the -310 favorite to go third to go Columbus.

Finally, Smith is the -185 leader to go fourth to San Jose (or whichever team picks in that spot). The native of Boston will attend Boston College in 2023-24 as he has dreamed of playing in the Beanpot Tournament. He will be the 14th member of his family to attend BC. Smith is ranked as the No. 3 North American skater. He played this past season with USA Hockey's National Team Development Program Under-18 team and had a team-best 127 points in 60 games.

That the picks behind Bedard are Fantilli, Carlsson and Matvei Michkov in that order is a +380 second favorite. Michkov had 20 points in the KHL last season and reportedly plans to stay in Russia until his three-year deal is up. There was a time when Bedard vs. Michkov was an actual argument over which player might go first. Unfortunately, those two never faced off at 2022 world junior tournament. Bedard had four goals in two games and Michkov had three goals in two games before the tournament was postponed by a COVID outbreak. 

We do know when Bedard's debut will be as Chicago visits Pittsburgh on Oct. 10 as part of the NHL's Opening Night schedule. 

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