Led by exciting, young hockey stars such as Elias Pettersson and Quinn Hughes, the Vancouver Canucks look like they could be a dangerous team for many years to come. But Seattle has a chance to knock its geographic rival down a peg when the Kraken plucks one Canuck in the 2021 NHL Expansion Draft.
Thankfully for the Canucks (ranked No. 3 in The Athletic’s organizational rankings in September), they have some more good prospects – Nils Hoglander, Vasily Podkolzin, Jack Rathbone and Jett Woo – in the pipeline. Like Hughes, these youngsters won’t have to be protected in the Expansion Draft.
Hoglander is already making an impact early this season. Whether they’re ready or not, Podkolzin, Rathbone and Woo will probably be pressed into action in 2021-22 because of salary cap issues.
Although the Canucks will get some help from a number of expiring contracts, Pettersson and Hughes are in the final year of their entry level deals and will get huge raises. Canucks general manager Jim Benning needs to get those two deals locked up before summer because the pending restricted free agents will surely attract the rarely used offer sheets from other teams.
These all add intriguing twists to the Canucks’ new rivalry before we find out which club will conquer Cascadia in 2021-22. (And let’s be clear, it should be called the “I-5-BC-99 rivalry,” not the “I-5 rivalry.” We wouldn’t want any of you getting stuck in Blaine.)
Assumptions
Forwards Tanner Pearson, Brandon Sutter, Sven Baertschi, and Tyler Graovac and defensemen Alex Edler, Jordie Benn, Travis Hamonic, and Ashton Sautner are due to be unrestricted free agents this summer. Most of them won’t be back, and maybe none will be re-signed before new deals for Pettersson and Hughes are ironed out.
If their current roster holds, the Canucks will have trouble complying with the NHL’s minimum requirements for exposing players in the Expansion Draft. Each team must expose at least one defenseman and two forwards who are under contract in 2021-22 and will have each played at least 40 NHL games this season or will have played in at least 70 NHL games in the previous two seasons.
Even if the league adjusts those game totals to account for the two COVID-19 abbreviated campaigns, Vancouver will be forced to expose defenseman Tyler Myers unless it acquires another defenseman who meets the requirements or re-signs someone like Edler or Hamonic to an extension. Our guess is the Canucks will get another veteran blue-liner under contract through 2021-22 before the draft.
Vancouver Canucks protected list for Expansion Draft
Forwards
Elias Pettersson (Lock)
Brock Boeser (Lock)
Bo Horvat (Lock)
J.T. Miller (Lock)
Adam Gaudette
Jake Virtanen
Tyler Motte
Patience is running low on Virtanen, 24, but as of now he’s a more valuable asset to keep as a trade chip rather than losing him for nothing to Seattle.
Motte is a good penalty killer, works hard, blocks shots and has decent skills, as shown with his four goals last postseason. Despite being a bottom-six forward, he gives the Canucks excellent value ($1.225 million per year through 2021-22) that they won’t want to let get away without having someone ready to capably perform those roles.
Defense
Nate Schmidt (Lock)
Tyler Myers
Olli Juolevi
After Schmidt, predicting which other defensemen the Canucks protect gets a little iffy. Vancouver might protect unproven prospect Brogan Rafferty instead of Juolevi or Myers.
Juolevi is finally getting some NHL action after numerous injuries slowed the progress of the 2016 fifth overall draft pick. It’s not quite make-or-break time, but his performance and how much playing time he gets this season will determine where he fits into the Canucks’ future plans.
Myers is an important part of Vancouver’s blue line, averaging the third most minutes per game on the team last season when he also killed penalties and was on the second-unit power play. Based on his impact and 6-8 frame, he should be protected. The physically dominant Vegas Golden Knights wore down the Canucks in the Western Conference semifinals last year. With that in mind, the Canucks can’t afford to lose another defenseman with size, especially with the uncertain futures of Edler, Hamonic, and Benn.
But Myers is due to receive $6 million per season through 2023-24, so Vancouver could leave him unprotected in the hope that his contract deters the Kraken. The consolation for losing him will be freeing up a good chunk of cap space.
Goalie
Thatcher Demko (Lock)
Demko, 25, stepped in when former Canuck Jacob Markstrom was injured and nearly single-handedly upset the Golden Knights last postseason. That had Kraken fans optimistic the 6-4 San Diego native could be bound for Seattle. But those hopes were dashed when Markstrom signed a free agent contract with the Calgary Flames.
Vancouver Canucks targets for Expansion Draft
Forwards
Kole Lind
Zack MacEwen
Antoine Roussel
Lind, a 2017 second-round draft pick, has improved in the minors and will start this third pro season in Utica of the American Hockey League next month. Without the defensive attributes of Motte and with offensively gifted prospects Hoglander and Podkolzin ahead of him on the depth chart, Lind should be exposed.
MacEwen, 24, had five goals in 17 games last season and earned a spot on the Canucks fourth line this season because of his rugged, physical game. At 6-3 and 205 pounds, he’d be a project the Kraken should consider. Not star material, but the type of player who can help a team be difficult to play against.
Roussel is that type of player now: he’s a tough competitor and has underrated skills to go along with his grit. But at 31 and a year after coming back from major knee surgery, he’s wearing down and wouldn’t be a long-term option for the Kraken.
Defense
Brogan Rafferty
Jalen Chatfield
Rafferty, 25, is on the Canucks’ six-man taxi squad and the 6-0, 195-pound D-man has just two NHL games under his belt after three years at Quinnipiac University. His first pro season was impressive, scoring seven goals and 45 points in 57 games at Utica while making the AHL All-Rookie Team in 2019-20.
Chatfield, a 24-year-old rookie, made it onto the Canucks’ roster out of training camp but hasn’t yet made his NHL debut. He’s played three seasons in AHL Utica, where the 6-1, 188-pound blue-liner has made an impression with his strong skating and aggressiveness, not his scoring (two goals and 17 points in 142 games).
Unless the Canucks lose two core defensemen to injuries over an extended period of time, it’s doubtful Rafferty or Chatfield will get significant minutes in the NHL this season. Besides Rafferty and Chatfield’s stunted development from getting mostly practice time with the Canucks, the Kraken’s scouting staff will be hard-pressed to fully evaluate these two before the Expansion Draft.
Goalie
Braden Holtby
Holtby, 31, signed a two-year, $8.6 million contract with the Canucks last offseason after spending the previous 10 seasons with the Washington Capitals. Although his statistics have dipped a bit, his credentials are impeccable: 2015-16 Vezina Trophy, 2016-17 Jennings Trophy and the No. 1 goalie for the 2018 Stanley Cup champions.
A solid bounce-back season with the Canucks would likely mean Holtby and his tortoises will be headed back south this offseason.
Side deal scenarios
The quality of Canucks youngsters exempt from protection combined with pending UFAs will help Vancouver GM Jim Benning avoid much angst when he has to submit his Expansion Draft protection list. So there shouldn’t be any need for Benning to pursue any trades with Kraken GM Ron Francis, nor should we expect Francis to consider dealing any other Expansion Draft selections to his cross-border rival.
Neither GM will be doing any favors for the other just a couple of months before the Kraken’s inaugural season and the start of the I-5-BC-99 rivalry. It just rolls off the tongue, doesn’t it?
Previous Sound of Hockey Expansion Draft team previews
Jim Wilkie is a longtime Northwest journalist, former NHL editor and NHL Insider writer for ESPN.com, onetime GSHL All-Star, and SJHA hockey dad. Follow him on Twitter @jimwilkie.
SEATTLE — Before playing a game the Seattle Kraken are already the hottest ticket in town as the team appears to have sold out its season ticket plans.
The team says that they will still work with the remaining depositors on their list to get them into Climate Pledge Arena during the team’s first season in 2021-2022.
In a statement to Sound Of Hockey, a Kraken spokesperson says “We are approaching the final stages of our general seat selection process. We are calling each and every deposit holder to discuss membership and seating options. Each depositor will have the opportunity to access tickets.”
Every depositor will receive a call from ticket representatives to offer membership plans. These plans will allow members to have access to a number of single-game tickets as well as other perks that are still being developed by the team. There will be tiers for these plans, some offering more perks than others. Depositors will be allowed to keep their priority number on the list to use if season packages become available.
On March 1, 2018, the team collected 35,000 deposits for season tickets in a matter of hours. It was a banner day for the hopeful franchise and showed the NHL that there was a passion for NHL hockey in Seattle. The momentum from that day helped Oak View Group receive approval from the City of Seattle to build what is now Climate Pledge Arena and the NHL to approve Seattle for expansion in December of that same year.
In September the Kraken began contacting its depositors to sell season ticket packages. The process was virtual due to caution concerning the COVID pandemic and the team experienced a high retention rate from the start. The building will hold a capacity of 17,100 but not every seat was reserved for season ticket packages. The Seattle Kraken planned on holding out 9,000 seats for partial season ticket plans and individual game availability.
The Kraken experienced higher retention rates from those initial depositors than they had anticipated and are pivoting in order to include all the fans that helped launch the franchise.
The NHL is blessed with highly skilled and entertaining young stars. Every season a new crop dazzles and this year will offer more of the same starting Wednesday night. At the end of each season, the league recognizes which one of the new kids is the best by awarding the Calder Trophy for Rookie of the Year.
Winning the Calder Trophy by no means guarantees a successful NHL career but the list of past winners is impressive. There are some all-time names like Bobby Orr, Mario Lemieux, Teemu Selanne, and Alex Ovechkin who have won.
Most of the winners are forwards but defensemen and even goalies have received the award. New Jersey Devils great Martin Brodeur won the Calder Trophy in 1994. Since then he has been prone to leaving the trophy in random rental cars, but that doesn’t diminish the honor.
Who will win this year? Here are the players to watch in this season’s Calder Trophy race.
The top Calder Trophy contenders
Kirill Kaprizov – LW – Minnesota Wild
The Wild used a fifth-round pick to select Kaprizov in 2015 but had not been able to convince him to sign and play in the NHL until this past summer. General manager Bill Guerin got him locked up – with a two-year entry deal – just before the league resumed its postseason. He wasn’t able to play in the postseason but the expectations are nonetheless high.
Kaprizov has played in the Russian KHL for CSKA the past three years. The last two of those years saw him tear the league up, scoring 30 and 33 goals respectively. While it might be easy to dismiss that due to it being a non-NHL league, he compares well to other Russians who have come over. New York Rangers forward Artemi Panarin played in the KHL at the same age and never scored more than 26 goals.
He’ll join a Wild team that is still searching for some consistent play at center – having a winger like Kaprizov should help any center – but Kaprizov is going to slide into their top six and their power play and get plenty of opportunity to score. We at Sound Of Hockey think that’s going to be enough for him to pile up points and end up winning the Calder Trophy.
Juuso Valimaki – D – Calgary Flames
He’s not a household name – although here in Washington State he’s well known for his days with the WHL’s Tri-City Americans – but he’s on his way. Valimaki was a first-round pick of Calgary in 2016 and will be a big part of its quest to conquer the new Scotia North division this season.
In his first pro year in 2018-2019, he split between the NHL (24 games) and the AHL’s Stockton Heat, where he recorded 18 points in 20 games. Primed to play with the Flames full-time last year, a knee injury that required surgery caused him to miss the season entirely. He rehabbed and was ready to play as the Flames entered the Edmonton Bubble last fall, but Calgary, in a shrewd move, kept him out to limit his games played in pro hockey and exempting him from the Kraken Expansion Draft. The Flames most likely would have protected him but that would mean someone else would have been exposed.
After a great stint in Finland in the fall, #Flames blueliner Juuso Valimaki is feeling confident heading into the 2020-21 NHL season! pic.twitter.com/lJLlTbGOaR
Valimaki is healthy now and started the year playing for Ilves Tampre in his native Finland. To assuage any worries about his knee, he lit up SM-Liiga by scoring at a point-per-game pace in 19 contests. He can skate and has an offensive mind always looking to quickly transition and lead the rush. His skill set should lead him to the point on the power play as well. Look for speed and end-to-end rushes in Calgary for Valimaki this year.
Igor Shesterkin – G – New York Rangers
The Rangers goalie of the future is going to get his shot now. Shesterkin has been on the come up and a big reason why New York was willing to let all-time great Henrik Lundqvist walk in the offseason. The 25-year-old Russian only has 12 games of NHL experience but has a strong track record in the KHL.
During his last three seasons with St. Petersburg SKA his lowest save percentage was .933 and his last season, 2018-2019, he posted an incredible 1.11 goals-against. But that was the KHL and things ramp up in North American pro hockey. Shesterkin adjusted well on this side of the globe and spent the 2019-2020 season with the AHL’s Hartford Wolfpack where he was just as dominant. With Hartford, his record was 17-4-3 with a .934 save percentage and 1.90 goals-against average.
He’s been consistent wherever he plays and there’s no reason to think that won’t continue. He will split time with the returning Alexandar Georgiev, but with this year’s compact schedule, Shesterkin will be in net enough to be in the Calder race.
If he were to win, Shesterkin would be the first goalie to win the Calder Trophy since Steve Mason won in 2009 with the Columbus Blue Jackets.
The best of the rest Calder Trophy candidates
Alexis Lafreniere – C- New York Rangers
The number one pick in October’s Draft will head straight to the NHL with the Rangers. He hasn’t played an NHL game yet, but his record in the QMJHL where he piled up 297 points in three seasons suggests he’ll be ready from day one. Toronto’s Auston Matthews was the last No. 1 overall pick to win the Calder Trophy the following season. Can Lafreniere do the same?
Tim Stutzle – C – Ottawa Senators
Taken two picks after Lafreniere, Stutzle is coming off an incredible performance with Germany in the World Junior Championship. An argument could be made he was the best player in the tournament and willed his team into the quarterfinals for the first time ever. He joins an up-and-coming Senators team which should put him in position to have an offensive impact.
Cozens is another player who dominated the World Junior Championship in January and can jump right into the NHL. Cozens was a first-round pick of the Sabres in 2019 after productive years in the WHL with the Lethbridge Hurricanes. He’s 19-years-old but at 6-foot-3 and 188 pounds he has the size to compete at the next level. Cozens has to make the Sabres roster first, but if he does, look out.
Gabriel Vilardi – C – Los Angeles Kings
The Kings have a loaded prospect pool and Vilardi may be the closest to popping in the NHL. Los Angeles drafted him in 2017 with the 11th overall pick and he’ll be a big part of their rebuild. He got a brief, 10-game look with the Kings last season and was impressive while scoring three times with seven points.
Ilya Sorokin – G – New York Islanders
Another stellar goalie out of Russia, Sorokin fever is ready to hit the Island this year. Sorokin, 25, played the past six seasons with CSKA Moscow in the KHL and routinely flirted with a save-percentage in the .930 range. He has a shot to end up the Islanders top goalie and with New York’s defensive style of play, he could end up with big numbers.
Trevor Zegras – C – Anaheim Ducks
Zegras delighted for the gold-medal-winning Team USA at this year’s World Junior Championship and the Ducks had to be drooling, or quacking, or whatever Ducks do. He can distribute the puck and showed off his deadly shot this winter. A key cog in Anaheim’s future, he should get plenty of ice time, though the Ducks apparently are not including him in their lineup on opening night.
The best part of this ridiculous Trevor Zegras snipe from last night is that he tried it a first time and then pulled it off on the second try like 10 seconds later pic.twitter.com/asQiZ2O6I5
The former Tri-City Americans goal scorer has scored in the AHL and will be making the next step with a loaded Carolina team this year.
Ty Smith – D – New Jersey Devils
He lit up the stat sheet with the Spokane Chiefs and now Smith will have a shot to crack the Devils roster this year. Can he use his high-end skating to help jump-start the New Jersey offense?
Jake Bean – D – Carolina Hurricanes
The reigning AHL Defenseman of the Year, Bean has a chance to contribute with the Hurricanes. Carolina’s depth on the blue line, however, makes him a long shot at the Calder Trophy.
The storm surges, the Bunch of Jerks t-shirts, and the snarky twitter feed all make the Carolina Hurricanes a fun team. But beyond all that, they happen to also be a good hockey team. After a nine-year absence from the playoffs, they’ve qualified the last two seasons and made a run to the conference finals in 2019. They have depth which means they will have a tough time protecting everyone from the Seattle Kraken at the NHL Expansion Draft.
Don Waddell is the general manager who will have to sort it out and make a tough choice because he’s going to lose a quality player. Seattle general manager Ron Francis is familiar with the Hurricanes roster. He drafted a number of these guys and it will be interesting to see which of his former players he brings to Seattle.
The Hurricanes have under a million dollars in cap space and have some important players who are going to be re-signed as both Andrei Svechnikov and Dougie Hamilton’s contacts expire after the coming season. Both of those players are key pieces and most likely will be re-signed, but that means Carolina will have to shed some salary, and the Expansion Draft could be a way to do so.
Assumptions
Svechnikov is a lock to be re-signed by the Hurricanes. He’s one of the brightest up-and-coming players in the NHL and for this exercise we’ll assume that he will be re-signed and protected. Hamilton is most likely in the same boat. There is a remote chance that Waddell could risk waiting to sign him until after the Expansion Draft. That would be interesting as Seattle would have the ability to negotiate him prior to the draft and the Hurricanes could end up losing him.
That scenario is unlikely however, so we’ll assume that Hamilton is not available to the Kraken.
Carolina Hurricanes Expansion Draft protected list
Forwards
The Hurricanes have a decision to make with former Portland Winterhawk Nino Niederreiter. He has two years left on a contract that earns him $5.4 million per season and that money could go towards re-signing other, more valuable players. Niederreiter, 28, didn’t produce last year, only scoring 11 goals. That’s a low number for a guy who’s perennially flirting with the 20-goal mark.
That doesn’t mean he’s done, however. Niederreiter posted one of his career-worst shooting percentages (9.6 %) and could rebound. He still drove play for the Hurricanes and was a 56-percent Corsi-for player, meaning Carolina typically benefited while he was on the ice. A rebound season is within reach for Niederreiter and if he does perform, he’ll play himself into protection.
What Waddell does with Niederreiter will impact the final forwards that the Carolina Hurricanes will protect for the Expansion Draft.
If they leave Niederreiter exposed, they will likely protect Jesper Fast. For our purposes here, we’ll protect Niederreiter but it will be a position to watch.
Hurricanes protected forwards
Sebastian Aho
Jordan Staal (NMC)
Andrei Svechnikov
Teuvo Teravainen
Warren Foegele
Vincent Trocheck
Nino Niederreiter
Defense
The Carolina Hurricanes blue line is the most intriguing area when it comes to looking at the Expansion Draft. Jacob Slavin is the one player in this group that is certain to be protected, but Carolina has a lot of depth here, which will benefit Seattle.
If Hamilton is re-signed he will also be a lock. However, if the Hurricanes don’t protect him then Jake Gardiner will join Brett Pesce as protected defenseman.
Hurricanes protected defensemen
Jacob Slavin
Brett Pesce
Jake Gardiner
Goalie
The Hurricanes return James Reimer and Petr Mrazek as the goalie tandem this season. Those two have left a lot to be desired and its surprising that Carolina did not add a goalie this offseason.
Entering the new season, Carolina has no goaltenders signed beyond 2020-2021. They will need to expose a goalie so obviously there are moves to make. Mrazek is the younger of the two returners so we’ll protect him here and wait to see who they add.
One long shot at being protected is youngster Alex Nedeljkovic. The 24-year-old has only six NHL games on his resume but has turned in four strong AHL seasons. If he continues, he might be an option to step up if both Reimer and Mrazek are let go.
Hurricanes protected goalie
Petr Mrazek
Carolina Hurricanes Expansion Draft targets
Forwards
Morgan Geekie
Jesper Fast
Nino Niederreiter (if left exposed)
Defense
Haydn Fleury
Jake Bean
Brady Skjei
Goalie
Alex Nedeljkovic
Thoughts
Defense feels like the best bet for Ron Francis and the Kraken here.
That being said, forward Morgan Geekie would be a quality pick. Francis drafted him when he was running the Hurricanes from the Tri-City Americans in the 2017 NHL Draft. Geekie, 22, was a late-season call-up this past year and shined. He scored three goals in two games and that came after a stellar 22-goal campaign in the AHL. He’s young, has promise, and Francis is familiar with him.
Francis is also familiar with his two best options on defense. Fleury, 24, was a first-round pick by Francis but has yet to have the impact you’d expect in a first rounder. Last year was his best in the NHL though, and if Francis still believes in him, he could be looking at a new situation with the Kraken.
Another Francis first-round pick is Jake Bean who could end up being the best play. Bean, who finished his WHL career in Tri-City, led AHL defensemen in scoring last season and if not for Carolina’s NHL depth at the blue line, he’d have already been up with the big club. He’s an offensive threat from the back end and in his two full AHL campaigns he’s put up 44 and 48 points. The upside is there, Francis knows him, and he’d be a valuable addition to the Seattle Kraken.
Side deal scenarios
If Niederreiter is left exposed, there could be a deal to be struck. Francis may prefer one of the defenders that Carolina has available, but if Waddell wants to unload Niederreiter’s contract he might be willing to give up something to do so. It is hard to see the Hurricanes offering both Niederreiter and a player in such a deal, but Francis might be able to get a high draft pick out of Carolina if he’s willing to take on Niederreiter’s salary. This would likely mean that Francis is OK passing on Bean or Fleury, though.
Although the Columbus Blue Jackets are a notoriously defensively-oriented team that flies under the radar in a small market, drama never fails to follow the Buckeye State’s NHL team. Seattle Kraken fans should keep a keen eye on the theatrics.
Recent rumors have swirled that young star center Pierre-Luc Dubois sought a trade out of Columbus. Although the 22-year-old signed a two-year, $10 million bridge contract — a smaller-term deal many players sign after restricted free agency and before reaching true unrestricted free agency — almost immediately after The Athletic’s Pierre LeBrun reported Dubois wanted out, the rumors are still blistering.
It’s yet another tricky situation for Columbus, which has struggled to retain young and promising forwards — see: Artemi Panarin and Ryan Johansen.
With Johansen, the Blue Jackets traded the centerman to Nashville and landed young defenseman Seth Jones in return. That worked out well.
With Panarin, Columbus never traded him and he jumped ship to the New York Rangers once he reached free agency. Although Columbus upset the Tampa Bay Lightning in a stunning playoff sweep in the first round of the 2018 playoffs, that one did not work out as well.
Seattle Kraken fans should keep a keen eye on that situation, because if Dubois is traded — and if so, for whom — it would impact the Columbus Blue Jackets’ protected list.
Offseason Wildcards
After the Blue Jackets signed Oliver Bjorkstrand to a five-year, $27 million extension, there aren’t many question marks looming with Columbus, aside from the situation with Dubois.
But Nick Foligno is someone to keep an eye on. The 33-year-old team captain is an unrestricted free agent but could be in play for protection if he’s re-signed.
Assumptions
Until Dubois is traded, we will put Dubois on our initial protected list.
Key Exemptions
Alexandre Texier, Liam Foudy, and Emil Bemstrom — three promising forwards who are expected to be NHL regulars this year for the Blue Jackets — are exempt because they haven’t accrued more than two professional seasons.
The same goes for goaltender Elvis Merzlikins. Even though Merzlikins is 26, he’s played only one NHL season and doesn’t need to be protected.
Protected List
Forward:
Cam Atkinson (lock)
Oliver Bjorkstrand (lock)
Pierre-Luc Dubois (lock, if not traded)
Max Domi (lock)
Boone Jenner (near lock)
Gustav Nyquist
Eric Robinson
Defense:
Seth Jones (lock)
Zach Werenski (lock)
Vladislav Gavrikov (near lock)
Goaltender:
Joonas Korpisalo
Columbus’ forward group is not as deep as other teams, which is why the situation with Dubois is so important to monitor.
If Dubois is traded, and there isn’t a forward returning that warrants protection, Columbus may elect to protect eight total skaters instead. The Blue Jackets boast a couple of interesting options on the blue line, which we’ll delve into below, so they could protect a fourth defenseman over someone like Gustav Nyquist.
Expansion Draft Candidates
Forwards:
Cliff Pu
Kole Sherwood
Kevin Stenlund
Calvin Thurkauf
Defensemen:
Gabriel Carlsson
Dean Kukan
Goaltender:
Matiss Kivlenieks
The two trendiest names on Columbus as far as the Seattle Expansion Draft are Carlsson and Kukan, and for good reason.
Carlsson, 24, is 6-foot-5 and comes with a first-round pedigree (the Blue Jackets took him No. 29 overall in the 2015 NHL Draft). The Orebro, Sweden native is regarded as a stay-at-home defenseman with great size, but Carlsson hasn’t stuck full-time in the NHL yet.
After Columbus traded defensemen Ryan Murray and Markus Nutivaara in the offseason, the logjam in front of him dissipated and he should stick with Columbus this season.
If Seattle is seeking a more veteran presence, Kukan is a fine option.
Kukan, 27, showed some offensive upside last year when he drew into the lineup with five points in 33 games, as well as two points (1-1-2) in 19 career playoff games.
While Kukan and Carlsson are the trendy candidates for selection, don’t sleep on Kivlenieks.
The 24-year-old netminder has been the No. 3 in Columbus behind Korpisalo and Merzlikins but has some prospect appeal. If Seattle’s scouting staff holds Kivlenieks in high regard, this is a good option to fill a goaltender spot on the Kraken’s initial roster.
Pu, Thurkauf, Stenlund, and Sherwood would all be young organizational depth pieces from the Blue Jackets and probably nothing more for the Seattle Kraken. Stenlund, a former second-round pick, is the most interesting of that quartet.
Previous Sound Of Hockey Expansion Draft Team Previews
Calgary signed the best free agent goaltender available this past offseason, giving Jacob Markstrom a six-year, $36 million contract to leave division rival Vancouver. Markstrom, 30, bailed the Canucks out numerous times by stealing games and locking down leads while earning team MVP honors the past two seasons. He ranked second in the NHL with 20.16 goals saved (the net difference between the expected total goals allowed and the actual total goals allowed for all scoring chances faced by the goalie) last season, according to Clear Sight Analytics.
His elite play simply masks other deficiencies on his team, and the center position is one that will be under a microscope in Calgary this year. Sean Monahan and Mikael Backlund are good players who play big roles, but the Flames lack that superstar centerman associated with upper tier teams.
Missing the playoffs in the tight North Division – consisting of all the Canadian clubs – or losing in the first round for a third consecutive year will surely amplify the calls to trade star winger Johnny Gaudreau or Monahan. Any fallout from such a big trade will also alter what the Flames, who have just a little more than $223,000 in cap space as of Jan. 5, leave for the Kraken to choose.
Assumptions
Milan Lucic’s no-movement clause presents a big problem for Calgary general manager Brad Treliving. Lucic doesn’t deserve to be among the Flames’ seven protected forwards, possibly forcing the Flames to expose a good middle-six forward.
However, Lucic has waived his NMC before – in 2019 when the Edmonton Oilers traded him to the Flames. He could be convinced to waive it again, but what’s in it for him? Lucic holds some leverage despite his declining skills and production. We’d like to listen in on that conversation Treliving has with Lucic.
We’ll bet Lucic waives his NMC, and we will double down that Seattle won’t take him and his cap hit of $6 million per year through 2022-23.
Calgary Flames Protected List for Expansion Draft
Forwards
Matthew Tkachuk (Lock)
Johnny Gaudreau (Lock)
Sean Monahan (Lock)
Elias Lindholm (Lock)
Dillon Dubé
Sam Bennett
Andrew Mangiapane*
*Contingent upon Lucic waiving his NMC.
Mangiapane would be a good pick for Seattle if Lucic messes things up for Calgary and doesn’t waive his NMC. The 24-year-old notched 17 goals and 32 points in 68 games during his first full season with the Flames, so he’ll need to prove that wasn’t a fluke.
Bennett, 24, showed why he was taken fourth overall in the 2014 entry draft, playing a ferocious, hard-hitting style in the Edmonton playoff bubble. He needs to play more like playoff wrecking ball Sam (five goals and eight points in 10 games) instead of regular season passenger Sam (eight goals and 12 points in 52 games) to remain on this list.
Defense
Noah Hanifin (Lock)
Rasmus Andersson (Lock)
Chris Tanev
Useless fact: Tanev was a few rows in front of me at Night 1 of Pearl Jam’s 2018 “Home Shows” at the stadium formerly known as Safeco Field. How Seattle is that? He’s practically one of us, so it’s too bad the former Canucks blue-liner will likely be protected.
The Flames could still opt to protect Mark Giordano instead of Tanev, 31, who is six years younger and $2.25 million per year cheaper than Calgary’s captain.
Goalie
Jacob Markstrom (Lock, NMC)
Calgary Flames Targets for Expansion Draft
Forwards
Mikael Backlund
Glenn Gawdin
Calgary knows what it’s going to get with Backlund, who has had seasons of 47, 53, 45, 47 and 45 points in the past five years. That production is not likely to go up much now that he’s 31, so I can see Calgary protecting other forwards. However, Seattle would do pretty well to get a versatile center such as Backlund who can score in the 50-point neighborhood.
If you’re hoping Spokane native Derek Ryan heads Seattle’s way, it won’t be through the Expansion Draft. The 34-year-old center will be a free agent after this season.
Defense
Mark Giordano
Oliver Kylington
Giordano will be 39 when the 2021-22 season begins, so the Flames can take a chance they’ll lose their captain to the Kraken. Although Seattle would prefer to skew younger, getting this former Norris Trophy winner would bring a reliable veteran leader who should still be able to deliver a good all-around game and play both special teams.
Giordano will also have just one year left on his contract, reducing the risk for Seattle. As a result, he could be good trade bait at the 2022 deadline, and the Kraken will get $6.75 million in salary cap space freed up for free agents that summer.
Kylington, 23, presents a young and raw option for the Kraken. The 2015 second-round pick put up good numbers in four-plus AHL seasons, has scored five goals and 15 points in 87 NHL career games and is projected to be on Calgary’s third pairing this season.
Goalie
David Rittich
No other Flames goalie besides Markstrom is signed beyond this season, so they’ll need to get either Rittich, Tyler Parsons, Louis Domingue or Garret Sparks under contract through the end of the 2021-22 season to comply with Expansion Draft rules. Rittich, who will be an unrestricted free agent after this season, fumbled his chances to seize Calgary’s No. 1 job but is a decent backup.
The Kraken can do better to look elsewhere for a netminder in the Expansion Draft, especially with the Flames offering interesting choices at forward and defense.
Side Deal Scenarios
Let’s suppose Markstrom leads the Flames on a lengthy playoff run. Calgary might be tempted to keep the core group together, so Treliving would have to consider offering a prospect or draft pick to Kraken GM Ron Francis to steer him away from Giordano, Mangiapane or some trade deadline acquisition.
The Flames have some good, young talent on the horizon. Among them are three such prospects who have been playing recently at the World Junior Championship: Canadian forwards Jakob Pelletier and Connor Zary and U.S. and Everett Silvertips goalie Dustin Wolf. The Flames have all of their 2021 NHL Entry Draft picks except for a fourth-rounder. Calgary also has Edmonton’s third-round pick.
Just sayin’.
Previous Sound of Hockey Expansion Draft team previews
Jim Wilkie is a longtime Northwest journalist, former NHL editor and NHL Insider writer for ESPN.com, onetime GSHL All-Star, and SJHA hockey dad. Follow him on Twitter @jimwilkie.
