The 6 players the Seattle Kraken must take in the 2021 NHL Expansion Draft

5. Brenden Dillon – Washington Capitals

You can’t win with star power alone in the NHL – just ask Connor McDavid and the Edmonton Oilers – and toughness, grit and substance still plays a major role in being a Stanley Cup contender, as the Tampa Bay Lightning discovered on their way to winning back-to-back championships.

Therefore, the Seattle Kraken would be wise to consider taking Washington Capitals defenseman Brenden Dillon on Wednesday, with the 30-year-old a solid and tough top-four defenseman that could also act as a mentor to a young player on the third-pairing depending on who else the Kraken select.

Dillon has consistently gone to the postseason with both the Caps and the San Jose Sharks, he can play big minutes, he can play on the penalty kill and he would bring a bucketload of grit and tenacity to the table for Seattle.

In 654 career NHL regular season games, Dillon has racked up a total of 1,518 hits in addition to 854 blocked shots, and he would provide a reliable and intimidating presence on the blueline for the Kraken.

He’s also not shy when it comes to dropping the gloves and he plays the game the right way, which would please his General Manager, and he would give the Kraken a considerable tough underbelly from the word go.

4. Vince Dunn – St. Louis Blues

As we saw with the Vegas Golden Knights in 2017, there is an opportunity for the Seattle Kraken to pick up one or two unpolished gems and turn them into elite NHL players.

Step forward Vince Dunn.

Selected with the 56th overall pick in the 2015 NHL Entry Draft by the St. Louis Blues, Dunn has long been since as a potential high-end defenseman in the league, and he’s certainly shown flashes of it.

However, he appears to have hit a bit of a brick wall for the Blues and a change of scenery could be just what the 24-year-old needs to really unlock his potential and take that next step to becoming a legit top-four blueliner in the NHL.

Dunn is a puck-moving defenseman with okay size at 6-foot and 203 pounds, while he can provide offense as backed up by the fact that he has recorded at least 20 points in each of his first four seasons in the NHL, including six goals and 14 assists for 20 points in a shortened season in 2020-21.

He had a Corsi of 50.9 and a 58.1 oZS% last year too, he can be used on the second power play unit and the left-shot is also pretty effective in his own zone, while the Kraken could sign the RFA to a team-friendly deal, giving them a player with a high ceiling at a low price.

That approach worked for the Golden Knights and it could certainly work for Seattle.

3. Yanni Gourde – Tampa Bay Lightning

Although there are a few valuable forwards that have been left unprotected by the Tampa Bay Lightning including Blake Coleman and Washington native Tyler Johnson, there is no doubt that the Kraken should absolutely take Yanni Gourde at the 2021 NHL Expansion Draft.

Although the Lightning can still swing a deal with Seattle in order to protect Gourde, Kraken General Manager Ron Francis would be foolish to pass up the chance to add what would be a heart and soul player.

Put simply, Gourde was the heartbeat of Tampa’s bottom six and he was also the engine in the well-oiled machine that won back-to-back Stanley Cups, the kind of player that just makes things happen in all three zones.

The true anchor of Tampa Bay’s highly-effective and deadly third-line – with Barclay Goodrow and Blake Coleman as the wings – Gourde is the true definition of a high-energy player and he would be the focal point of Seattle’s bottom-six if they opted to select him on Wednesday.

Gourde had 27 hits, 10 takeaways and 10 blocked shots in 23 Playoff games this year as the Lightning repeated as champions, but he also chipped in with seven points (6 G, 1 A) and can be relied upon to come up clutch in the game’s biggest moments – as was the case in Game 7 of the Semifinals against the New York Islanders (see above).

With 36 points (17 G, 19 A) in 56 regular-season games in 2020-21, the 29-year-old offers a great offensive threat from a third-line role, he can be used up and down the lineup and he’s an underrated penalty killer too.

With Goodrow traded to the New York Rangers and right up against the cap, the Lightning will lose a few more key players and the Kraken will no doubt be more than happy to take on Gourde’s $5,166,666 AAV, while he also has four more years remaining on his current deal so Seattle would be getting a bottom-six juggernaut with plenty of term.

2. Carey Price – Montreal Canadiens

Of all the players left unprotected, perhaps the biggest and most surprising name was Montreal Canadiens goalie Carey Price, who is coming off a stellar postseason in which he went 13-9-0 with a .924 Save Percentage and a 2.28 Goals Against Average.

Now, save for the last two games, Price endured a rough Stanley Cup Final as the Tampa Bay Lightning beat the Canadiens in five, but he was elite for much of the postseason and you can be confident that his pedestrian regular season, in which he posted a .901 SV% and a 2.64 GAA, was just a blip.

Regardless, we saw what vintage Price is capable of in the 2021 Stanley Cup Playoffs and that’s why the Seattle Kraken should absolutely take the future Hall of Fame goalie in the 2021 NHL Expansion Draft.

Yes, there is a general consensus that Montreal General Manager Marc Bergevin left Price unprotected in order to protect Jake Allen knowing that Seattle would be willing to take on Price’s $10.5 million AAV, which runs through the 2025-26 season, and there is every chance the Canadiens swing a trade in order to make sure Price doesn’t go anywhere.

However, while that is a hefty contract to take on, the Kraken are starting from scratch and they are in prime position to absorb that kind of cap hit, while they would be acquiring a one-time Vezina Trophy winner who still has plenty left in the tank.

Furthermore, Price would become the immediate face of this franchise and, for a few years at least, the Kraken could build their roster and their franchise around a goalie who would ensure that there is plenty of media interest in the NHL’s newest team.

Again, it is a big contract to take on but if Ron Francis wants to make a splash in his first season as Seattle GM, then taking Price at the Expansion Draft and building a roster around the 33-year-old netminder would be one hell of a way to do it.

1. Gabriel Landeskog – Colorado Avalanche

If the Seattle Kraken intend to build their roster around a player that is both an elite performer and a natural-born leader, then they should look no further than Gabriel Landeskog, who was left unprotected by the Colorado Avalanche on Sunday.

Now, it is worth remembering that Landeskog is a pending Unrestricted Free Agent and will have his pick of teams to choose from on the open market, with reports claiming that the Avs Captain is looking for a deal in the $9 million range.

With speculation mounting that negotiations are not going well between the forward and Colorado, Seattle has an exclusive window to negotiate with Landeskog before other teams get a chance and they have an intriguing sales pitch.

For instance, the Kraken can offer Landeskog the chance to become the face of the franchise and be at the heart of everything they do on and off the ice, while building the entire roster around his talents.

He would be guaranteed top-line minutes, there are plenty of other high-end players left unprotected to put around him and, due to his resume in Colorado, it would not be surprising if Seattle made Landeskog the first Captain in franchise history, either.

With 52 points (20 G, 32 A) in 54 regular season games for the Avs in 2020-21, in addition to 13 points (4 G, 9 A) in the Playoffs, Landeskog is a proven top-line points producer in the NHL and he would be a tremendous pickup for the Kraken who would be a good bet for the postseason in their inaugural year with the 28-year-old spearheading the offense and leading the franchise.