The Seattle Kraken will reveal their selections for the 2021 NHL Expansion Draft tonight. Flyers fans have been discussing strategies and the potential picks for the better part of two years now, and the name of the chosen player will finally be revealed.
NHL teams released their lists of protected players on Sunday. Most teams chose the option to protect seven forwards, three defenseman, and one goaltender. Others chose to protect eight total skaters and one goaltender.
And these rules to remember when Seattle makes it picks today ⤵️ pic.twitter.com/E4aVd43oNa
— Pierre LeBrun (@PierreVLeBrun) July 21, 2021
- Forwards: Claude Giroux, Kevin Hayes, Sean Couturier, Nicolas Aube-Kubel, Oskar Lindblom, Scott Laughton, Travis Konecny
- Defensemen: Ivan Provorov, Travis Sanheim, Ryan Ellis
- Goaltender: Carter Hart
According to the majority of projections, five exposed players have realistic chances to be selected by the Kraken.
- James van Riemsdyk (LW, 32, $7 million AAV through 2022-23)
- Shayne Gostisbehere (D, 28, $4.5 million AAV through 2022-23)
- Jakub Voracek (RW, 31, $8.25 million in 2023-24)
- Robert Hagg (D, 26, $1.6 million AAV through 2021-22)
- Justin Braun (D, 34, $1.8 million AAV through 2021-22)
If van Riemsdyk, Gostisbehere, or Voracek is selected, the Flyers will lose a key contributor from their active roster. However, they will be left with options in terms of salary cap flexibility to improve a roster that limped to a disappointing finish in 2020-21.
The biggest storyline involving the Flyers in relation to the expansion draft is the connection with Kraken head coach Dave Hakstol. The Flyers have 15 players on their current roster that were coached by Hakstol during his tenure as Flyers head coach from 2015-2018. The list includes Voracek, van Riemsdyk, Gostisbehere, and Hagg.
The Kraken are choosing from plenty of big name NHL talent. The Montreal Canadiens have exposed goaltender Carey Price and captain Shea Weber just weeks after they led the team to the Stanley Cup Final. Both players do bring significant injury concerns.
The Colorado Avalanche have left unrestricted free agent Gabriel Landeskog exposed. A signing would count as Seattle’s selection.
The Tampa Bay Lighting boasted one of the deepest rosters in the NHL on their way to their second consecutive Stanley Cup. They were forced to leave forwards Tyler Johnson, Alex Killorn, and UFA Blake Coleman unprotected in favor of their top players. Labeling these guys as expendable is a nice problem to have.