While we still don’t yet know when the NHL will drop the puck for the 2020-21 season (really just 21 at this point), we do know this: whenever play starts for 2021-22, there will be one more team, as the Seattle Kraken officially join the league.
That means that, at some point before that season’s start, we’ll see a repeat from the 2017 offseason: an expansion draft. The Kraken, helmed by former Hurricanes General Manager Ron Francis, will select one player from 30 of the other 31 teams (Vegas is exempt).
The rules will be the same from the 2017 draft, here’s a reminder on the key points there:
- NHL teams can protect either seven forwards, three defensemen and a goalie or eight skaters (regardless of position) and a goalie
- All players with no movement clauses must be protected unless they agree to waive it
- First and second-year players and unsigned draft points are exempt and don’t count towards protection totals
- Every team must expose one defenseman who is under contract in 2021-22 and played in at least 40 games in 20-21 or 70 total games the last two seasons (wouldn’t be stunned if those numbers get adjusted with a likely shortened season) and two forwards that meet the same requirement
- Every team must expose one goaltender who is under contract for 2021-22 or a restricted free agent (an RFA goalie must receive a qualifying offer prior to the expansion draft)
With those requirements in mind, and using CapFriendly’s handy expansion draft simulator, I set out to project the Canes’ protected list for the 2021 expansion draft, with the caveat that things could obviously change depending on what happens for individual players next season.