Seattle Kraken mock expansion draft version 7.0 – FINAL
Today is the day Seattle Kraken (and NHL) fans have been anticipating. It’s time for the expansion draft. Before the event happens, we have our final mock draft.
By this point, anyone interested in the Seattle Kraken has read mock drafts until their eyes filled with squid ink. That’s why we will keep our final mock draft much shorter than usual.
Early free agency
The Kraken had an exclusive two-day negotiating window from July 18-20. If Seattle signs someone during this period, he counts as the player selected from his former team.
How much big game hunting did the team do? Rumor has it GM Ron Francis signed goalie Chris Driedger away from Florida. There are plenty of other big-ticket free agents out there, such as Gabriel Landeskog (Colorado) and Taylor Hall (Boston), and Dougie Hamilton (Carolina).
All along, I thought the Kraken should go hard after Landeskog. He’s the kind of player and leader a team can build around. Landeskog’s contract demands could make him cost-prohibitive, but he’s with the effort. There are other free agents I think the Kraken should sign pre-draft, and they are included with their likely salary.
Before proceeding to the mock draft, I encourage everyone to read this article on how the Seattle Kraken should handle their draft. In short, it’s how Francis can take advantage of supply and demand to build a strong organization.
Update 8:00 AM PDT – The Seattle Kraken signed defenseman Adam Larsson from Edmonton for 4-years, $16M ($4M AAV).
Good work @Frank_seravalli. Larsson has signed a 4 year deal with the Kraken. $4 mil aav. https://t.co/TwIO0VWNP7
— Darren Dreger (@DarrenDreger) July 21, 2021
Draft rules
The NHL has a precise set of expansion draft rules. They are the same ones used by the Vegas Golden Knights in 2019. All parameters existing teams must follow when protecting players are listed below.
Here is a brief recap of the rules in place when the Seattle Kraken selects the Expansion Draft. They are quite favorable to the drafting team. Remember, Vegas went to the Stanley Cup Finals in their first year of existence.
- All teams except Vegas (exempt as part of their franchise agreement) have two options for protecting players.
- Option 1: Protect seven forwards, three defensemen, and one goalie.
- Option 2: Protect eight skaters in any combination of forwards or defensemen and one goalie.
- At least one defenseman, two forwards (who played at least 27 games in the prior year or 54 games in the two previous years) under contract, and one goalie (goalies can be restricted free agents) must be made available.
- First and second-year players, in addition to unsigned draft choices, are exempt. Due to COVID-19, many young players are ineligible because they haven’t played in enough NHL games over the last two seasons.
Again, there is no way to account for trades Francis makes or backroom deals he puts together before and during the draft. There is no cap on the number of transactions he can make.
For now, with the help of Capfriendly.com’s Expansion Draft Simulator, this is our preliminary team.