Seattle Kraken build their foundation through NHL mock expansion draft

Here’s our first NHL expansion draft as we try to put together the Seattle Kraken from scrap.

It’s official. The NHL’s 32nd team has a team name – the Seattle Kraken. I couldn’t be happier for the city of Seattle, which is such a gorgeous city filled with passionate sports fans. This is long overdue and Seattle’s quickly going to fall head over heels in love with hockey, just like Las Vegas did.

We’re roughly a year away from the expansion draft, but it’s never too early to start looking at how the Kraken might assemble their team. They’ve put together a very smart front office filled with some diverse voices and I’m anxious to see what they decide to do because they have so many options.

I decided to put together an expansion roster for them myself. Now, some ground rules. First of all, I didn’t include any trades in this mock draft. The Kraken are definitely going to use trades to exploit their leverage, especially with a stagnant salary cap. But for the sake of making this exercise less stressful and complicated, I elected not to include any.

Secondly, let me explain the concept for my roster. I wanted a fast and exciting team built to be competitive not just immediately, but in the future as well. But at the same time, I want them to be competitive off the bat. Not necessarily Stanley Cup contender competitive, but at least competitive enough to be in the playoff hunt.

Thirdly, I went with more forwards than Vegas initially did. That’s because I feel like the forwards I got will get me more in trades than defensemen would have. Fourthly, I deliberately targeted younger goalies because there wasn’t a veteran like Marc-Andre Fleury available.

For my coach, I had some interesting options, but I elected to go with Peter Laviolette. I also considered Gerard Gallant, but Seattle’s front office will be analytics-driven, so I wanted a coach who will use those analytics properly. I feel like that’s Laviolette.

For this exercise, I used the expansion draft tool from CapFriendly. I went with the public protection option (most commonly protected players) and made some changes if I thought something felt off. Definitely check it out and go to them for anything salary-cap related. They’re an outstanding resource for both writers and fans. Feel free to post your expansion draft rosters in the comments below!

Atlantic

Boston Bruins – Connor Clifton

The Boston Bruins will have some difficult decisions to make. However, none of their forwards intrigue me too much. Losing Torey Krug means they’ll keep Matt Grzelcyk. However, Connor Clifton will still be available.

Buffalo Sabres – Johan Larsson

Johan Larsson will be a UFA after this season, so who knows if he’ll be on the Buffalo Sabres. But if he remains an underrated forward due to his defensive value, which is often overlooked with forwards, he’ll be a target of mine no matter what team he’s on.

Detroit Red Wings – Gustav Lindstrom

The Detroit Red Wings were historically bad this season, so it should surprise no one that their pickings will be slim for Seattle. Gustav Lindstrom is my pick because he’s a young defenseman.

Florida Panthers – Brett Connolly

I was a bit surprised to see Brett Connolly available, but I’ll take it. He’s a Stanley Cup champion and he might be a one-trick pony, but his one trick happens to be one of the hardest things to do in hockey – scoring goals.

Montreal Canadiens – Paul Byron

Paul Byron is the kind of forward I’d like to target. He’s reasonably priced, provides solid scoring, and also has some defensive value.

Ottawa Senators – Maxime Lajoie

Not a surprise that the Ottawa Senators won’t really have too much to offer. Maxime Lajoie has posted some solid numbers in a limited sample size, so I’d be willing to take a chance on him. This is another team I’d be willing to work out a trade with, maybe for Bobby Ryan.

Tampa Bay Lightning – Tyler Johnson

Come on, the guy’s from Washington. I had to pick him.

Toronto Maple Leafs – Justin Holl

Pierre Engvall is an interesting option, but give me the guy who has quietly played solidly in top-four minutes with the Maple Leafs.

Central Division

Chicago Blackhawks – Calvin de Haan

I’ve always been a fan of Calvin de Haan. Quietly puts up solid underlying numbers and Seattle will need some veteran defensemen. He’s a perfect pick.

Colorado Avalanche – Tyson Jost

The Colorado Avalanche will have some tough decisions to make, especially at forward. Ryan Graves is tempting on defense and Pavel Francouz or Philip Grubauer would be a nice goalie to pick. But I’ll go with Tyson Jost, largely because my roster needs some centers.

Dallas Stars – Stephen Johns

I’m tempted by Radek Faksa, but Stephen Johns is a perfect defenseman for me to take a shot on. If he can prove himself to be healthy after major concussion issues the past few seasons, he could be a solid top-four defenseman.

Minnesota Wild – Jordan Greenway

Jordan Greenway’s a unique power forward. His defensive numbers are strong and though his offensive numbers don’t jump out at me, I think he has a bit of potential there.

Nashville Predators – Connor Ingram

Connor Ingram has so much talent. The Nashville Predators are likely going to protect Juuse Saros, so that would leave him available. I’d listen to offers to take someone else (Kyle Turris intrigues me), but it would take a hefty price for me to avoid taking a talented young goalie.

St. Louis Blues – Oskar Sundqvist

The St. Louis Blues are going to lose a talented player to Seattle. It’ll likely be either Jordan Kyrou, Oskar Sundqvist, or Sammy Blais. It all depends on how next season goes, but right now, I’d take Sundqvist.

Winnipeg Jets – Adam Lowry

Much like the Blues, the Winnipeg Jets are going to have to lose a good player. That good player is probably going to be Adam Lowry. You could make an argument for Matthieu Perreault, who I’ve always liked, but I went with youth here.

Metropolitan Division

Carolina Hurricanes – Jake Bean

The Carolina Hurricanes have an embarrassment of riches. This means young stud defenseman Jake Bean, who has all the tools you want to see in a top pairing NHL defenseman, is going to be available. I’ll happily take him. Hopefully, he’ll be Seattle’s Shea Theodore.

Columbus Blue Jackets – Josh Anderson

Josh Anderson has had injury issues, but he’s a unicorn in today’s NHL. He’s a skilled forward who is big and can play physical. It’s really hard to find someone with his skillset. Anderson will likely be unprotected, meaning I’ll be happy to take him. Of course, that depends on his health.

New Jersey Devils – Janne Kuokkanen

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The New Jersey Devils don’t have too much to offer. They’ll be able to protect most of their best players. If P.K. Subban is available, he’d be a fascinating pick. But since he isn’t in this expansion draft, I’ll go with Janne Kuokkanen, a talented young forward the Devils got in the Sami Vatanen trade.

New York Islanders – Jordan Eberle

Ultimately, the New York Islanders will probably have to choose two of Josh Bailey, Kieffer Bellows, Casey Cizikas, and Jordan Eberle to protect. If Eberle isn’t protected, I’d take him.

New York Rangers – Lias Anderson

The New York Rangers will have some interesting players available. I’ll go with Lias Anderson, though.

Philadelphia Flyers – James van Riemsdyk

Shayne Gostisbehere intrigues me, but in fairness, I believe he won’t be on the Philadelphia Flyers in a year. James van Riemsdyk is an undeniably flawed player. But he scores goals and you can’t win games without scoring goals.

Pittsburgh Penguins – Matt Murray

The Kraken need a starting goalie and Matt Murray’s the best goalie who will likely be available. And hey, picking a Pittsburgh goalie worked out well for the Vegas Golden Knights.

Washington Capitals – T.J. Oshie

Seattle’s first captain! If the Capitals make him available, T.J. Oshie checks so many boxes. He’s a star, he’s from Washington, and his leadership and intangibles bring a lot to Seattle.

Final Roster And Thoughts

Now that I’ve drafted the Seattle Kraken, let’s review my roster.

Forwards

T.J. Oshie (captain)

Tyler Johnson (alternate captain)

James van Riemsdyk (alternate captain at home)

Paul Byron (alternate captain on the road)

Brett Connolly

Adam Gaudette

Sam Bennett

Jordan Greenway

Adam Lowry

Tyson Jost

Oscar Sundqvist

Austin Wagner

Josh Anderson

Jordan Eberle

Janne Kuokkanen

Lias Anderson

Johan Larsson

Defensemen

Jake Bean

Calvin de Haan

Justin Holl

Stephen Johns

Caleb Jones

Connor Clifton

Maxime Lajoie

Radim Simek

Gustav Lindstrom

Jacob Larsson

Goalies

Matt Murray

Connor Ingram

Adim HIll

Coach

Peter Laviolette

Thoughts

I’m a pretty big fan of this roster. My goalies are freaking awesome. I feel like I really nailed my picks there. Matt Murray is a two-time Stanley Cup champion and between Hill and Ingram, I have two extremely talented young goalies. At worst, Murray should be a very nice placeholder for Ingram. And if he rebounds, well, I have three good goalies. That’s a nice problem to have!

My defense is pretty darn good. It’s filled with veterans who can play in top-four roles and young players who can potentially be more. The blueline reminds me a lot of the Vegas Golden Knights initial group.

Though I like my forwards, my one issue with the roster is it has no true number one center. Then again, there were none available in my mock draft. And I didn’t expect there to be. Hopefully, guys like Gaudette and Jost can flourish in Seattle.

The Golden Knights set one heck of a bar for success for expansion teams. This roster might not be as successful as their 2017-18 roster, but I like it a lot and I think it would be a competitive roster. As we get closer to the expansion draft, maybe I’ll include some fun trades.