NHL Expansion Draft - Winnipeg Jets

Expansion Draft Rules

All information from NHL.com

Protected Lists

• Clubs can protect one of two options:
• Seven forwards, three defensemen, and one goaltender
• Eight skaters and one goaltender
• All players with No-Movement clauses in their contract have to be protected unless they waive their clauses
• All first- and second-year pro players will be exempt from selections and don't have to be protected

Player Exposure Requirements

• Clubs must meet minimum requirements for exposure in the Expansion Draft:
• One defenseman who is under contract in 2017-18 and played in 40 or more games in 2016-17 or played in 70 or more games in two prior seasons.
• Two forwards who meet the same requirements as above
• 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.

Vegas Requirements

• Must select one player from each existing club for a total of 30 players
• Must select at least 14 forwards, 9 defensemen, and 3 goaltenders
• Must have a minimum 20 players under contract for the 2017-18 season
• Must reach the salary cap floor and cannot exceed the cap ceiling
• May not buy out any players selected in the Expansion Draft before the first summer following their first full season

Protection List

• NMC= No Movement Clause
• NTC= No Trade Clause
• Red = Who I would protect

Forwards

POS	Age	Name	Cap Hit	Expiration	40/70
C	24	Mark Scheifele	$6,125,000	UFA – 2024	X
RW	30	Blake Wheeler	$5,600,000	UFA – 2019	X
C	29	Bryan Little	$4,700,000	UFA – 2018	X
C	29	Mathieu Perreault	$4,125,000	UFA – 2021	X
C	29	Shawn Matthias	$2,125,000	UFA – 2018	X
RW	33	Chris Thorburn	$1,200,000	UFA – 2017	X
LW	24	Adam Lowry	$1,125,000	RFA – 2018	X
C	22	Marko Dano	$925,000	RFA – 2017	X
RW	23	Joel Armia	$925,000	RFA – 2018	X
C	22	Andrew Copp	$925,000	RFA – 2018	X
RW	23	Scott Kosmachuk	$720,000	RFA – 2017	40GR
RW	27	Anthony Peluso	$675,000	UFA – 2017	35GR
RW	23	JC Lipon	$650,000	RFA – 2017	40GR
C	25	Quinton Howden	$650,000	RFA – 2017	7GR
C	23	Ryan Olsen	$616,667	RFA – 2017	40GR
LW	25	Ivan Telegin	$0	-	40GR

Defensemen

POS	Age	Name	Cap Hit	Expiration	40/70
D	32	NMC – Dustin Byfuglien	$7,600,000	UFA – 2021	X
D	32	NMC – Toby Enstrom	$5,750,000	UFA – 2018	X
D	27	Tyler Myers	$5,500,000	UFA – 2019	X
D	23	Jacob Trouba	$2,812,500	RFA – 2018	X
D	32	Mark Stuart	$2,625,000	UFA – 2018	X
D	28	Paul Postma	$887,500	UFA – 2017	X
D	25	Ben Chiarot	$850,000	RFA – 2017	X
D	25	Julian Melchiori	$625,000	RFA – 2018	22GR
D	29	Brian Strait	$600,000	UFA – 2017	13GR
D	24	Brenden Kichton	$600,000	UFA – 2017	40GR

Goaltenders

POS	Age	Name	Cap Hit	Expiration
G	29	Ondrej Pavelec	$3,900,000	UFA – 2017
G	27	Michael Hutchinson	$1,150,000	UFA – 2018
G	23	Connor Hellebuyck	$667,500	RFA – 2017

Exempt List

• LW Kyle Connor
• RW Patrik Laine
• C Jack Roslovic
• LW Nikolaj Ehlers
• C Brandon Tanev
• LW Brendan Lemieux
• C Nicolas Petan
• C Chase De Leo
• C James Lodge
• C Jansen Harkins
• D Logan Stanley
• D Joshua Morrissey
• D Nelson Nogier
• D Jan Kostalek
• D Tucker Poolman
• G Jamie Phillips
• G Eric Comrie

Explanation of my Protection List

• Winnipeg could have a problem since they have two defensemen, Dustin Byfuglien and Toby Enstrom, with NMCs.  That causes a problem because I'm sure that they would love to protect seven forwards but with the current roster situation I think they'll only end up protecting eight total skaters.  At forward, I am protecting Mark Scheifele, Bryan Little, Adam Lowry, and Joel Armia.  On defense, as I mentioned above, Byfuglien and Enstrom both have NMCs and I am also going to protect Tyler Myers and Jacob Trouba.  In net, I am making the difficult decision to protect Connor Hellebuyck as he is looking to be the future of the franchise at the position.
• With the players I protected, Blake Wheeler, Mathieu Perreault, and Shawn Matthias are all left unprotected at forward.  On defense, Mark Stuart is the only defenseman left exposed and Michael Hutchinson is the only goaltender.
• If I am Winnipeg's GM I am attempting to trade Toby Enstrom, trying to convince him to waive his NMC, or even buying him out just so I can protect seven forwards.  I wouldn't want to potentially lose Wheeler, Perreault, or Matthias and would do everything possible to not lose those key players.

*All cap and salary information come from CapFriendly.com*