Writer: Tyler Jones
Editor: Brandon Caputo
Photo Credit: NHL.com
Rules for Expansion Draft can be found here: Expansion Draft FAQ
Information and research done through capfriendly.com
Protection lists helped by information from theathletic.com
With the Expansion draft less than a week away, I wanted to post a couple blogs to give some of my opinions on what the roster could look like for the NHL’s 32nd franchise, The Seattle Kraken. With lots of help from CapFriendly.com, The Athletic, and Armchair GM Sports founder Brandon Caputo; I have put together a team that in my eyes has looks towards the future, but can compete right now!
First, let’s take a look at the rules for the draft that the Kraken have to follow:
Projected Cap Ceiling 81.5 Million
Must select 1 player from each team for total of 30 (Vegas is exempt)
Must select minimum of 20 players already under contract
Players selected for the Expansion team must have a total cap hit value of between 60% and 100% of the 2020-21 salary cap upper limit
Minimum players selected per position: 3 G, 9 D, 14 F
I am extremely happy with the way the team is looking with half the teams picked from! I’m liking the mixture of veterans with experience and young guys right on the cusp of becoming solid players. With all the news that the offseason brings, especially this year with everything happening so much faster, it has been quite a ride staying on top of everything! I am trying to be as realistic as possible with this, but bear with me because the league is not stopping until protection lists are officially in!
*The short form "NMC" in this article will show that the player holds a No Move Clause designation & must be protected by their team, as a result of negotiating that clause into their current contracts
(unless voluntarily waived by the player)
Let’s take a look back on the selections so far:
LW-C-RW
van Riemsdyk-Kerfoot-Zucker
Drouin-Jenner-Blackwell
Koivula-Merkley-Sprong
LD-RD
Lauzon-Stecher
Bean-Miller
Foote
G
Driedger
Daccord
With the Eastern conference selected, I will move on to the West!
Photo Credit: NHL.com
Anaheim Ducks protect:
F Rickard Rakell
F Troy Terry
F Sam Steel
F Max Jones
D Cam Fowler
D Hampus Lindholm
D Josh Manson
D Haydn Fleury
G John Gibson
The Seattle Kraken select…
Photo Credit: AP Photo/Rick Scuteri
F Isac Lundestrom 21 RFA(2021)
The former 2018 1st round pick of the Ducks hasn’t been the player fans thought he would be when drafted so far. In 71 NHL games, the 21 year old center only has 15 points total. I feel like he was rushed into the big leagues a little too fast and probably needs some time to find his game. He is only 21 years old and flashed some potential in the Swedish league last season as well putting up 11 points in 12 games. I think with him being so young, he is worth it to grab and probably play on your AHL team for at least another year. The potential is there, just have to see if the Kraken can unlock it.
Arizona Coyotes protect:
F Clayton Keller
F Phil Kessel (NMC)
F Nick Schmaltz
F Christian Dvorak
F Tyler Pitlick
F Lawson Crouse
F Connor Garland
D Oliver Ekman-Larsson (NMC)
D Jakob Chychrun
D Kyle Capobianco
G Darcy Kuemper
The Seattle Kraken select…
Photo Credit: Christian Petersen/Getty Images
F Christian Fischer 24 RFA(2022)
The former 32nd overall pick has had his ups and downs in his short NHL career thus far. The points clearly are not going to be there, as he only put up 20 points in his last 108 NHL games, but his defensive game is more than visible. He will be another stellar penalty killer to go along with some of the others acquired thus far.
Calgary Flames protect:
F Matthew Tkachuk
F Johnny Gaudreau
F Sean Monahan
F Mikael Backlund
F Elias Lindholm
F Andrew Mangiapane
F Dillon Dube
D Noah Hanifin
D Rasmus Andersson
D Chris Tanev
G Jacob Markstrom (NMC)
The Seattle Kraken select…
Photo Credit: Amy Irvin / The Hockey Writers
D Oliver Kylington 24 RFA(2021)
Kylington is exactly the type of young-puck moving defenseman the NHL is moving towards. He’s an excellent skater and passer with above average vision to make up for his lack of size at only 185 lbs. The 24 year old has had a rough time cracking the Flames line-up, so let’s get him some more ice-time. More important than just ice-time, power-play time, that’s where he’ll thrive.
Chicago Blackhawks protect:
F Jonathan Toews (NMC)
F Patrick Kane (NMC)
F Alex DiBrincat
F Dylan Strome
F Adam Gaudette
F Brandon Hagel
F Henrik Borgstrom
D Connor Murphy
D Riley Stillman
D Caleb Jones
G Kevin Lankinen
The Seattle Kraken select…
Photo Credit: Associated Press
F David Kampf 26 RFA(2021)
Chicago just did not have much to choose from at all. I thought about Zadorov, but he’s slower and will want a new contract for more money than Kampf will want. The 26 year old Czech is a big body at 6’2” and can be a solid 4th liner or depth player.
Colorado Avalanche protect:
F Mikko Rantanen
F Nathan MacKinnon
F Gabriel Landeskog
F Andre Burakovsky
F Nazem Kadri
F Valeri Nichushkin
F Tyson Jost
D Samuel Girard
D Devon Toews
D Cale Makar
G Phillip Grubauer
The Seattle Kraken select…
Photo Credit: Getty Images
F Joonas Donskoi 29 UFA(2023)
Colorado certainly screwed me over earlier this week by trading Ryan Graves to New Jersey, as that is exactly who I planned on selecting. I had a feeling they would do something though so I made a back-up plan! I’ve always been a fan of Joonas Donskoi and thought he was a player I’d always like on my team if I coached or was GM for a club. He has had at least 30 points in six of his seven NHL seasons and is a great defensive player on top of it. He will be a great leader for a young team on top of all that.
Dallas Stars protect:
F Tyler Seguin (NMC)
F Jamie Benn (NMC)
F Joe Pavelski
F Alexander Radulov (NMC)
F Radek Faksa
F Roope Hintz
F Denis Gurianov
D Esa Lindell
D John Klingberg
D Miro Heiskanen
G Anton Khudobin
The Seattle Kraken select…
Photo Credit: Ashley Landis/The Dallas Morning News)(Ashley Landis/Staff Photographer
G Ben Bishop 34 UFA(2023)
With Dallas trading Jason Dickinson (who was my selection), I decided to go for a veteran back-up goalie who can come in and be a starter if need be. He makes almost 5 million for two more years, but with as much cap space as Seattle will have it shouldn’t be an issue. Bishop will be a great leader for the young squad as well.
Bishop waived his no-move clause on July 17th, in order to be eligible as an Expansion Draft selection.
Edmonton Oilers protect:
F Connor McDavid
F Leon Draisatl
F Ryan Nugent-Hopkins
F Josh Archibald
F Jesse Puljujarvi
F Kailer Yamamoto
F Tyler Benson
D Darnell Nurse
D Duncan Keith (NMC)
D Ethan Bear
G Mike Smith
The Seattle Kraken select…
Photo Credit: THE CANADIAN PRESS IMAGES/Larry MacDougal
F Devin Shore 26 UFA(2023)
Devin Shore is a solid depth guy who has bounced around a little bit, but still has some value. I like that he’s only 26 years old with two years remaining on a very team friendly deal. He might also end up being a part of a trade, you never know.
Los Angeles Kings protect:
F Anze Kopitar
F Viktor Arvidsson
F Alex Iafallo
F Adrian Kempe
F Lias Andersson
F Trevor Moore
F Carl Grundstrom
D Drew Doughty (NMC)
D Sean Walker
D Matt Roy
G Cal Peterson
The Seattle Kraken select…
Photo Credit: Getty Images
F Blake Lizotte 23 RFA(2022)
Blake Lizotte went undrafted out of St. Cloud State and signed with the Kings after his college career. His size has been seen as an issue, but so many undersized forwards are thriving in today’s game. I see such a young guy, at only 23 years old, that could have some solid potential as a top 9 playmaker.
Minnesota Wild protect:
F Mats Zuccarello (NMC)
F Kevin Fiala
F Marcus Foligno
F Jordan Greenway
F Ryan Hartman
F Joel Eriksson Ek
F Nico Sturm
D Jared Spurgeon (NMC)
D Matt Dumba
D Jonas Brodin (NMC)
G Kaapo Kahkonen
The Seattle Kraken select…
Photo Credit: Bruce Kluckhohn/NHLI via Getty Images
D Carson Soucy 26 UFA(2023)
To say that Minnesota messed up my plans with those buy-outs when I started this, is an understatement. I had Matt Dumba penciled in from the time I thought of doing this mock draft and that went away as soon as Ryan Suter was sent packing. Now, Carson Soucy is no Matt Dumba, but he is a 6’5” booming D-man on a reasonable 2 year at 2.75 million a season contract.
Nashville Predators protect:
F Filip Forsberg
F Luke Kunin
F Colton Sissons
D Roman Josi (NMC)
D Phillipe Myers
D Mattias Ekholm
D Dante Fabro
D Alexandre Carrier
G Juuse Saros
The Seattle Kraken select…
Photo Credit: Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
F Yakov Trenin 24 RFA(2022)
The rumors around the two Nashville centers, Duchene and Johansen, have been flowing like water over the last month. I know some think a deal can be worked out for the Kraken to select one of the two, but if I’m Seattle, I don’t want either of them at all. So I decided to go with the young Russian forward is Trenin. He is a big body who has shown flashes of higher potential while playing on the Predators 4th line. I think with more playing time and development, he could be a potential 2nd/3rd line winger.
San Jose Sharks protect:
F Logan Couture
F Evander Kane
F Timo Meier
F Tomas Hertl
F Kevin Labanc
F Rudolfs Balcers
F Jonathan Dahlen
D Erik Karlsson (NMC)
D Marc-Edouard Vlasic
D Radim Simek
G Adin Hill
The Seattle Kraken select…
Photo Credit: Nhat V. Meyer/Bay Area News Group
F Ryan Donato 25 RFA(2021)
Donato has bounced around to a few different teams in his young NHL career, and hopefully I have found him a long term home. Donato is inconsistent, but has spurts of offensive ability that realistically will see him being a 3rd line forward.
St. Louis Blues protect:
F Ryan O’Reilly
F Ivan Barbashev
F Brayden Schenn
F David Perron
F Oskar Sundqvist
F Robert Thomas
F Jordan Kyrou
D Justin Faulk
D Torey Krug
D Colton Parayko
G Jordan Binnington
The Seattle Kraken select…
Photo Credit: Getty Images
D Vince Dunn 24 RFA(2021)
With the rumors of Tarasenko being left unprotected, it made me pause for a moment on selecting Vince Dunn. But in the end, I will go with the MUCH cheaper and younger 2-way defenseman in Dunn. He has a ton of potential to be a 2-3 d-man and can move the puck fairly well. He’s not a big defenseman, but I like that I have a good mixture of bigger and smaller defenseman to pair up and even everything out a little.
Vancouver Canucks protect:
F Brock Boeser
F Bo Horvat
F J.T. Miller
F Tanner Pearson
F Tyler Motte
F Elias Pettersson
F Matthew Highmore
D Tyler Myers
D Nate Schmidt
D Olli Juolevi
G Thatcher Demko
The Seattle Kraken select…
Photo Credit: Rich Lam/Getty Images
F Jake Vitanen 24 RFA(2022)
For Vancouver, it came down to two guys for me, Madison Bowey or Jake Virtanen. I decided on the latter because of the young age of only 24 and that he still has some value. Canuck fans have been waiting for him to break out, and it just isn’t seeming to happen. With a fresh start, I think Jake could the a steal in this Expansion draft.
Winnipeg Jets protect:
F Blake Wheeler (NMC)
F Kyle Connor
F Mark Scheifele
F Nikolaj Ehlers
F Pierre-Luc Dubois
F Adam Lowry
F Andrew Copp
D Josh Morrissey
D Dylan DeMelo
D Neal Pionk
G Connor Hellebuyck
The Seattle Kraken select…
Photo Credit: Colby Spence (Illegal Curve)
D Logan Stanley 23 RFA(2021)
Another player who could end up being a steal is Logan Stanley. The 6’7” defensive defenseman is only 23 years old and has only 37 games of NHL experience. He is still a prospect in every sense of the word and what does Seattle not have yet? Prospects! I just couldn’t pass up on a player like this.
The Officially Unofficial Seattle Kraken Roster
Photo Credit: NHL.com
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