NHL 21 Simulation: Seattle Kraken Expansion Draftees
Goaltender
Anton Khudobin, Dallas Stars – 5-11, 194-pounds, 34 years-old, 11 NHL seasons)
It was somewhat surprising to see a variety of goalies on the NHL 21 trade block throughout the simulation, including Calgary’s Markstrom and Rittich, Korpisalo from Columbus, and Toronto’s Aaron Dell. Taking his team all the way to the 2020 Stanley Cup Final, Khudobin, the Kazakh netminder, only makes sense to move if he falls in the tank next year as predicted. Last week, Patrick Smith of The Hockey Writers concurred.
“It’s a simple answer on who the Kraken should select…Khudobin provides options for the Kraken as either starter or backup. They get a solid goaltender that can play starter’s minutes at a good price. At the time of the draft, Khudobin will have two years left on a $3.33M AAV contract.”
Other Notable Players Available
Of course available in the sense of having a video game simulation predict the future seven months out. Other recognizable players left on their NHL 21 team’s trading blocks at season’s end include Chicago’s Andrew Shaw, Columbus’ Nick Foligno, Detroit’s Danny DeKeyser, Minnesota’s Nick Bonino, New Jersey’s Travis Zajac, and Ottawa’s Artem Anisimov.
And that’s the most involved you will see this guy get into the draft process…for now. Be on the lookout in the new week or so for Ed Stein’s follow-up to his way too early mock draft created in June. There are still many variables before expansion draft time, the biggest being the 2020-21 season.
If you haven’t done your own NHL 21 Franchise Mode yet, give it a go and see if your available players match mine! And enjoy the trade deadline mini-game too. ⚓