Speculation: Expansion: who would you protect?

[BigFatCat999]

I'm still waiting for a clarification on Fiala, Kamenev, and saros

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[RyanGetzlafsHairline*]

There is still a ton up in the air, but if Kamenev/Fiala/Saros and the like are exempt, it won't hurt the Preds too much with the 8 skater 1 goalie option.

Forsberg
Neal
Johansen
Smith
Weber
Josi
Ekholm
Ellis

So they'd likely lose one of Jarnkrok/Wilson/Salomaki/whoever. Not so bad. If Fiala and company aren't protected, then almost every team is exposing someone pretty good.

 

[Soundgarden]

Weber, Josi, Ekholm, Ellis.
Forsberg, Johansen, Neal, Smith/Fiala(depending on rules)
Rinne

I could see Poile offering a pick for Vegas to choose Wilson or whomever if we really want to keep Smith or Jarnkrok.

Not that bad all things considered.

 

[AdmiralsFan24]

Despite his resurgence, I'm not sure I'd protect Rinne.

 

[Soundgarden]

Goalie would be the easiest position to fill, we can get by with a UFA stop gap for a while. It all depends on how far Saros is by the draft. You have to be 100% ok with moving on from Rinne though, because he'll be the best goalie choice for an expansion team, and he'll help them get to the floor.

 

[JamestheSame]

I agree with Soundgarden.

 

[jstreet]

Not protecting Rinne and getting rid of the contract would be a huge move if Saros can play.

It's a tremendous risk. I honestly don't know what I would do. Except pray that Nystrom was chosen.

 

[bdub24]

Weber Josi Ekholm

Forsberg Neal Johansen

Watson? Arvidsson? Ellis?

 

[PredsV82]

you people saying don't protect Rinne are insane. just sayin.

maybe i'll think differently in summer of 2017, but not right now

 

[EXTRAS]

Goalie would be the easiest position to fill, we can get by with a UFA stop gap for a while. It all depends on how far Saros is by the draft. You have to be 100% ok with moving on from Rinne though, because he'll be the best goalie choice for an expansion team, and he'll help them get to the floor.

Best goalie choice imo would be whomever Tampa doesn't protect: vasi or bishop.

 

[RyanGetzlafsHairline*]

Best goalie choice imo would be whomever Tampa doesn't protect: vasi or bishop.

Bishop is a UFA at the end of next year, he may be unsigned or playing for another team by the time of the expansion draft.

 

[token grinder]

I think you protect, Johansen, Forsberg, Josi, Ekholm, Saros, Neal, Fiala, Kamenev

You Expose Weber, Rinne, Ellis

You also offer Las Vegas/Quebec/Seattle a 2nd round pick for future considerations for them not to draft Weber or Rinne or Ellis

I think you will see a lot of that IMO.

A new team will be able to draft a pretty good team of 2nd liners and 2nd pair Dmen and stockpile a tom of picks and build a farm quickly.

 

[EXTRAS]

Did you just say to expose weber? And for a 2Nd the expansion team will pass on him?

 

[PredsHabs]

7 Forwards
Johansen
Forsberg
Neal
Smith
Fiala if left unprotected
Kamenev if left unprotected
Arvidsson/Vesey


3 defensemen
Weber
Josi
Ekholm

1 Goalie
Saros if he will be unprotected and depending on how he plays next year


Should we maybe think of moving Ellis before we just give him away?
Goalie is a tough decision but the future is what we need to look to.

 

[Pred303]

he did. an expansion team would jump all over a weber or rinne not protected instead of any draft choice you could offer them. an instant name high impact player to be respectable early.

if it were before this next season depending on what the protected mix is you do something like;

if it's 7 forwards/3 defenders/1 goalie...
...you protect Weber, Josi, Eckholm and risk Ellis, Bitetto
...you protect Johansen, Neal, Forsberg, Smtih, Jarnkrok, Fiala, Kamenev/Arvidsson and take your risks on aged guys like Fish and ribs and on your younger prospects and Wilson
...you protect Rinne and risk Saros.

that way you probably lose Ellis or Wilson

it the mix is 8 skaters and 1 goalie you protect your defense corps and best existing forwards first;
...josi, weber, eckholm, ellis
...Johansen, Neal, Forsberg, Smith
...rinne


you risk everyone else, hoping they choose a Wilson instead of a Fiala/Saros.

if it's 10 skaters and a goalie you protect your 4 man defense corp and add probably a Fiala, Jarnkrok/Arvidsson to the above 4 forwards and risk Kamenev and Saros and hope the choice is a Jarnkrok/Wilson/Arvidsson level player

Now if it's in two years and if Vesey signs and Fiala makes the team and are both successful then your very depth puts you in the worst trouble as far as risking a top type player.

 

[Scoresberg]

I think it's really unfair if you can't protect prospects. If we lose Saros, Fiala or Kamenev or two of them think about teams who have a lot deeper prospect pool what are they going to lose. If that happens the expansion team will have the deepest prospect pool in the league by far and a decent roster. In a few years they'll be a contender easily. It shouldn't be that easy.

 

[Soundgarden]

I think I'd rather lose a Smith than Ellis. The prospect rule blows, but with every team in that position the new team has to have a good strategy instead of picking 30 prospects. Don't forget we have the option of dealing picks and prospects to keep our more desirable unprotected guys.

Something else to keep in mind is if there are two teams I believe once you get a player taken in the draft you get an extra protected player before the second team picks. So if we convince Vegas takes Wilson we can protect Fiala/Ellis/Smith whomever before Seattle/Quebec picks.

 

[PredsV82]

I cant rememeber where but I asked this question elsewhere

Will they really be able to specify the number of defensemen and forwards indvidually rather than the total number of skaters? Becuase, although limited, there are some players who could be considereed both, with Byfuguly being the most obvious choice.

I mean, I think it would be well worth our while to let Eliis skate on the 4th line as a forward for a few games at the end of the season before the expansion and claim he has been converted to a forward.

I would almost think to avoid this scenario the draft protection rules would simply be to exempt a certain number of skaters and a goalie.

 

[Armourboy]

While I certainly understand the idea that they want these teams to get off and running, I think you will see some things changed from the 8/1 idea. While I think most GM's will be ok with needing to let go of some roster guys ( mainly because it could potentially help them with the salary cap) I don't think any of them are going to be happy about having their top prospects that they have developed be in line for the pickings, especially ones that are still in the minors.

Wouldn't surprise me at all if it isn't modified to include a number of prospects outside the roster spots. I think the argument will be that if the new teams are going to be allowed to start with a better opening night roster than the past, then they will have more opportunity to build their own prospect pool unlike in the past.

That said, the guys I protect are definitely Joey, Forsberg, Josi, Ekholm. Past that it will depend on where the team is ( are we still a playoff team or have the wheels fallen off) and how certain players are playing.

Sitting here today you would protect Rinne and Weber, but with their cap hits and age who knows what they will look like in a couple of years. You could want to keep both, or I could see exposing both. Saros development could certainly have an impact on Rinne.

Ellis is a guy I think most want to protect, namely due to his contract, but a 2nd pairing Dman you can live without if there is someone else you just need to keep.

Also for us it will depend as well on how guys like Fiala and Kamanev look and are progressing. Today they would be a toss up with some other guys, but in another year or two they could be more important to keep than say a guy like Ellis.

 

[Scoresberg]

I just.. I like the drafting of roster players, they have to get decent depth cause they ain't getting any stars. I just don't get that they can pick our best prospects. Give them like compensatory picks instead of actual prospects.

 

[Armourboy]

I just.. I like the drafting of roster players, they have to get decent depth cause they ain't getting any stars. I just don't get that they can pick our best prospects. Give them like compensatory picks instead of actual prospects.

While I don't think you will see them be able to get any stars, they certainly could build a playoff eligible team, especially when you consider other teams will be getting weaker in the process.

I'm like you though, the idea of a guy like Fiala or Kamanev getting picked before they even had a real chance to get here is BS in my mind. Its one thing to lose your depth on your roster, its another to lose that plus your top prospects.

In that scenario I could see a freaking expansion team being better off than most of the teams in the league.

 

[Scoresberg]

In that scenario I could see a freaking expansion team being better off than most of the teams in the league.

Yep, this is my exact fear. Better team than some of the teams in the league and a future dynasty for free.

You gotta start from the bottom, it'll take years but that's what everyone else has gone through.

 

[Armourboy]

After reading some other places, if it does end up being 7/3/1, do we consider trying to sell off Ellis and get something in return, be it picks or protected players?

If this is the case it could make for one hell of an interesting season. As someone suggested, do you see teams making trades based on creating the best 7/3/1 you can and letting everything else settle out, or do you see teams going the older route of protecting their 7/3/1 and hope they can convince the team to take picks or someone else in return.

 

[glenngineer]

We're going to lose one or two players. If that hurts our depth then we haven't done well at building a team on all levels. Yes, it would suck to lose some guys but they are trying to give new franchises a better shake at having a competitive team right from the get go. How long did it take us to get to the playoffs? 6, 7 years? Then the fire sale. Then the sale of the team, luckily locally.

While it sucks we could lose a few good players, once we lose one player in expansion, another few players are then able to be protected, which is what I think will happen in what I've read. Is it perfect. Nope. Will it cripple us, absolutely not.

It will depend on who else is available and what the GM's of the new teams are trying to do as far as building a team. We could be very surprised at who is taken.

Say a team has already picked up some quality top 6 talents, you still need bottom 6 guys and what if a Sissons was available or a Salomaki, those are valuable guys to have on a roster as well. It doesn't mean we wouldn't lose a top 6 F or top 4 D but at the same time, maybe we lose something we can easily replenish.

 

[nomorekids]

The expansion draft wouldn't likely happen until next summer, so Kamenev and Saros should be okay as exempted first\second year pros. Fiala may not, so you protect him.

I don't see it being an issue, but I would also protect Saros and leave Rinne exposed because 1) I think his contract is that bad and 2) I'd rather figure out a goaltending solution than suffer through the last years of a very expensive and already diminishing asset.