Expansion Draft Preview: Carolina Hurricanes
The Seattle Kraken are going to get a good player from the Carolina Hurricanes in the upcoming Expansion Draft.
That’s the reality of having a deep roster loaded with quality players. You aren’t going to be able to fit them all under your protection scheme.
Barring a pre-draft move or a side deal with Seattle, Carolina is going to have to bite the bullet here.
Eligible Forwards
@Sebastian Aho, @Jordan Staal (NMC), @Teuvo Teravainen, @Nino Niederreiter, @Vincent Trocheck, @Warren Foegele, @Brock McGinn, @Jordan Martinook, @Jesper Fast, @Cedric Paquette, @Andrei Svechnikov, @Morgan Geekie, @Steven Lorentz, @Spencer Smallman
Eligible Defencemen
@Dougie Hamilton (UFA), @Jaccob Slavin, @Brady Skjei, @Brett Pesce, @Jake Bean, @Jani Hakanpaa, @Maxime Lajoie, @Roland McKeown
Eligible Goaltenders
@James Remier (UFA), @Petr Mrazek (UFA), @Alex Nedeljkovic, @Dylan Wells, @Jeremy Helvig
Exempt Players
Yegor Korshkov, Seth Jarvis, Ryan Suzuki, Dominik Bokk, Martin Necas, Jamieson Rees, Vasili Ponomarev, Stelio Mattheos, Jack Drury, Blake Murray, Beck Warm
What should they do?
Jordan Staal carries a no-movement clause and there isn’t any word that the Hurricanes have asked him to waive it. Beyond Staal, Carolina has Sebastian Aho, Teuvo Teravainen, Vincent Trochek, Nino Niederreiter, and Andrei Svehnikov as no-brainers to protect from Seattle, meaning they’ll surely use the 7-3-1 protection scheme.
The seventh and final forward comes down to either Warren Foegele, Jesper Fast, or Steven Lorentz. It could also end up being Morgan Geekie, an unrestricted free agent, if he’s signed before the draft.
On the blueline, Jaccob Slavin and Brett Pesce are the two obvious defencemen to protect, leaving Carolina with one more spot for the defenceman.
Given Jake Gardiner’s struggles with injury, he won’t be the final defenceman under Carolina’s protected list. Ultimately, the decision for the Canes comes down to veteran defender Brady Skjei or former first-round pick Jake Bean. Skjei was solid for Carolina last season, logging 20:44 per game. Bean has shown major upside but hasn’t yet established himself as a top-four NHL defender. He scored 12 points in 42 games in 2021, logging 14:32 per night.
The Canes could look to flip Bean for draft picks or a forward that they could protect instead of Foegele, Fast, or Lorenz, or they could leave Skjei exposed and hope that Carolina avoids him due to his $5,250,000 cap hit. This is a difficult situation to project.