The 2016-17 NHL season hasn't even begun yet.
However, once the Stanley Cup is awarded to the champions of the NHL, there will be an expansion draft. The Las Vegas (insert name here) ill begin the process of stocking it's pantry with premium NHL players. This is not going to be your father's NHL expansion draft. The Vegas club is going to have it's choice of USDA Grade A, prime cuts of NHL talent.
The Las Vegas franchice paid a record $500 million dollars expansion fee to join the NHL.
That type of membership has it's privileges, including having direct access to A-List, established NHL stars to populate their inaugural season roster with.
How exactly will the 2017 NHL Expansion Draft work?
According to the NHL, all 30 NHL clubs will have two options for players they wish to protect in the Expansion Draft:
A). 7 forwards, 3 defensemen and 1 goaltender
B). 8 skaters (forwards/defensemen) and 1 goaltender
* All players who have currently effective and continuing "No Movement" clauses at the time of the Expansion Draft (and who to decline to waive such clauses) must be protected (and will be counted toward their club's applicable protection limits).
* All first- and second-year professionals, as well as all unsigned draft choices, will be exempt from selection (and will not be counted toward their club's applicable protection limits).
* All Clubs must meet the following minimum requirements regarding players exposed for selection in the Expansion Draft:
i) One defenseman who is a) under contract in 2017-18 and b) played in 40 or more NHL games the prior season OR played in 70 or more NHL games in the prior two seasons.
ii) Two forwards who are a) under contract in 2017-18 and b) played in 40 or more NHL games the prior season OR played in 70 or more NHL games in the prior two seasons.
iii) One goaltender who is under contract in 2017-18 or will be a restricted free agent at the expiration of his current contract immediately prior to 2017-18. If the club elects to make a restricted free agent goaltender available in order to meet this requirement, that goaltender must have received his qualifying offer prior to the submission of the club's protected list.
* Players with potential career-ending injuries who have missed more than the previous 60 consecutive games (or who otherwise have been confirmed to have a career-threatening injury) may not be used to satisfy a club's player exposure requirements, unless approval is received from the NHL. Such players also may be deemed exempt from selection by the League. Regulations Relating to Expansion Franchise
* The Las Vegas franchise must select one player from each presently existing club for a total of 30 players (not including additional players who may be acquired as the result of violations of the Expansion Draft rules).
* The Las Vegas franchise must select the following number of players at each position: 14 forwards, nine defensemen and three goaltenders.
* The Las Vegas franchise must select a minimum of 20 players who are under contract for the 2017-18 season.
* The Las Vegas franchise must select players with an aggregate Expansion Draft value that is between 60-100% of the prior season's upper limit for the salary cap.
* The Las Vegas franchise may not buy out any of the players selected in the Expansion Draft earlier than the summer following its first season.
The 30 NHL Clubs must submit their Protection List by 5:00 P.M. ET on Saturday, June 17, 2017. The Las Vegas team must submit their Expansion Draft Selections by 5:00 P.M. ET on June 20 and the announcement of their selections will be released on made on June 21.
The Las Vegas franchise will be given the same odds in the 2017 NHL Draft Lottery as the team finishing with the third-fewest points during the 2016-17 regular season.
The Las Vegas franchise's First Round selection in the 2017 NHL Draft will be determined in accordance with the 2017 NHL Draft Lottery and, as a result, the Las Vegas franchise will be guaranteed no lower than the sixth overall selection.
The Las Vegas franchise then will select third in each subsequent round of the 2017 NHL Draft (subject to trades and other potential player transactions) Please digest this expansion draft information because there will be a written exam on it later this week.
On Friday, I was listening to a podcast from TSN radio out of The Peg. Pierre LeBrun picqued my curiosity when he said that the NHL may allow the Las Vegas (insert name here) to begin making trade up to three weeks before the expansion draft, which will occur on June 21, 2017. So, if this news is indeed true, The Las Vegas (insert name here) will be green lighted to wheel and deal draft picks for players on June 1, 2017.
No NHL expansion team has ever been granted the opportunity to make pre-expansion draft trades before.
Then again, no other NHL expansion team has ever ponied up a half a billion dollars as a franchise entry fee.
It's very true that he with the gold makes the rules.
Money talks and (bleep) walks inside the NHL Board of Governors and ownership groups. Las Vegas will not be entering the NHL just to be in it.
They are in it to win it. They will want to be as ultra- competitive as they can be from Day Numero Uno.
Las Vegas GM George McPhee will not have players to trade for other players, however, he will have very valuable currency in the form of Entry Draft picks and Expansion Draft options to use as currency to close trade deals. McPhee will be able to invest his draft choices to acquire established star players who are not eligible for expansion protection.
McPhee will not have the luxury of playing his organizational draft prospects because he simply will not have any to speak of. Therefore, GMGM will have to build a roster with household name players.
This is going to be a fun process to track between now and June 1, 2017.