NHL expansion draft: How it works, and what it means for the Flyers
How much have franchises paid to join the NHL over the last 30 years? Even adjusting for inflation, Seattle is paying more than seven times what two-time defending champion Tampa Bay paid in 1992.
The terms of Seattle’s expansion draft are identical to those Vegas followed four years ago. Whether the Kraken can have the same wildly successful first season as the Golden Knights remains to be seen. Here are the details:
Step 1 is for NHL teams to submit lists of players they are protecting from Seattle by Saturday. Seattle will pick one player from each NHL team except Vegas.
Step 2 is a July 18-20 window in which Seattle may negotiate with pending (and unprotected) free agents. Brian Elliott, Alex Lyon, and Samuel Morin are the Flyers’ unrestricted free agents. Carter Hart, Nolan Patrick, Travis Sanheim, and Carsen Twarynski are restricted free agents. Hart, Sanheim, and Patrick are expected to be protected. Patrick, the No. 2 overall pick in 2017 whose career has been beset by injuries, is a most interesting decision. He’s just 22, turning 23 on Sept. 19.
A team can lose only one free agent to Seattle, which would count toward the expansion draft.
Step 3 is the draft itself, which is Wednesday, July 21 (8 p.m., ESPN2). Chris Fowler will host.
The Kraken will acquire 30 players, 20 of whom must be under contract for 2021-22. Seattle must get a minimum of 14 forwards, nine defensemen and three goaltenders.
NHL teams have two protection options. They can shield 11 players (seven forwards, three defensemen, one goalie) or eight skaters (any combination of forwards and defensemen) and one goaltender.
Notable Flyers who could be exposed include Jake Voracek, Shayne Gostisbehere, and James van Riemsdyk.
Seattle’s head coach is former Flyers coach Dave Hakstol. Its general manager is Ron Francis, a Hall of Fame player and a former GM of the Carolina Hurricanes.
» READ MORE: What does Dave Hakstol's hiring mean for Flyers in expansion draft?
Seattle’s last professional team, excluding junior hockey clubs, was the Totems, which played in the Western Hockey league from 1958-74 and the Central Hockey League in 1974-75.
The Seattle Metropolitans won the Stanley Cup in 1917. After winning the Pacific Coast Hockey Association, they played the Montreal Canadiens, champions of the National Hockey Association, and won a best-of-five series, three games to one. The NHL formed following the series with four teams: two in Montreal, one each in Toronto and Ottawa.
A kraken is a mythical sea monster. Think Bigfoot in water.
Gone from the Flyers
Seattle is the 11th team the NHL has added in the last 30 years. Here is a look at Flyers players plucked during the previous 10 expansion drafts.
Notable
Kerr, third all-time in Flyers’ history with 363 goals, was immediately traded by San Jose to the Rangers. He finished his career with Hartford in 1992-93, coached by Paul Holmgren.
Rumble, a Flyers’ first-round pick in 1987, played two seasons for Ottawa. He was minus-24 the first season, minus-50 the next. Those were some rough Senators teams back then.
Lomakin was the first Russian to play for the Flyers. His 19 goals in Florida’s inaugural season was second to Scott Mellanby (30). Lomakin was out of the league two years later.
Hull was reacquired by the Flyers before he played a game with Atlanta. He played all 18 postseason games in 1999-00 as the Flyers lost to the Devils in the Eastern Conference Finals in seven grinding games.
Anisimov, a Flyers’ third-round pick in 1994, should not be confused with the current Senators defenseman with the same name.
Bellemare was a key defensive specialist as the Golden Knights reached the Cup Finals in their first year, easily the most successful inaugural season of the four major sports.
Money, money, money
Here is the cost of expansion over the last 30 years:
Source: Inquirer research, USInflationCalculator.com.
Notable
Franchise values are according to Forbes as of December.
The Rangers ($1.65 billion), Toronto ($1.5 billion), and Montreal ($1.34 billion) had the highest values.
Arizona ($285 million), Florida ($295 million), and Columbus ($310 million) had the lowest.
The Flyers ($800 million) were ranked 7th. Ed Snider and his group paid a $2 million expansion fee in 1967-68, the equivalent of $15.4 million today.