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Projecting the Vancouver Canucks Expansion Plans
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J.D. Burke
Mar 18, 2016, 12:45 EDTUpdated:
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General Managers are meeting in Boca Raton, Florida to discuss, among other things, expansion into new markets. The declining Canadian dollar appears to have worked Quebec City out of the picture, but Las Vegas and Seattle remain distinct possibilities going forward.
Part of the discussion centered on the expansion draft and the rules therein. The procedures are by no means set in stone, and subject to change based on the number of teams added to the league. As of yesterday, we have a close enough idea of the infrastructure to make educated guesses about the impact it might have on the Vancouver Canucks roster and the steps they might take to protect themselves going forward.
Expansion could include as many as two new teams, so it should come as no surprise that there are two proposed ideas for how they will approach the expansion draft. Mike Zeisberger of Postmedia News reported on the proposals made, and they cut considerably deeper than in expansion drafts in years past. 
The basic blueprint includes the following:
a) If the league expands by just one team, existing franchises can only lose a maximum of one player.
b) Should the decision be made to add two teams, the 30 current squads could lose no more than two players from its roster.
c) First and second-year pros are automatically exempt.
d) If the league does plan on expanding in time for the 2017-18 season, a final announcement would need to be in place by June so GMs could make appropriate moves as they pertain to the entry draft and free agency. Under that scenario, the expansion draft would likely take place in the summer of 2017.
Continued…
In Option 1, a team can protect a total of 11 players — seven forwards, three defencemen and one goalie.
In Option 2, a team can protect nine players — eight skaters and one goalie.
It is designed and intended to create a somewhat deeper draft so the expansion club can be more competitive early on
At first blush, Option 1 would appear to be the favourable choice, given the fact that you could protect more players. But if you are a team that is rich on the blueline and want to protect more than three defencemen, Option 2 might be the way to go.
A few things jump out immediately. I’m especially curious as to how the league defines a professional season. Nikita Tryamkin, for example, had played in two consecutive seasons for Yekaterinburg Avtomobilist in the KHL by the time the Canucks drafted him in the third-round of the 2014 NHL Entry Draft. Do seasons played professionally overseas, or in the AHL, count towards a player’s professional seasons accrued?
Let’s assume, for argument’s sake, that two professional seasons means two seasons played in the NHL or AHL. The Canucks are going to have some difficult decisions to make, so I’ll try and make a few for them.
Option 1
Henrik Sedin
Daniel Sedin
Bo Horvat
Jake Virtanen
Jared McCann*
Brandon Sutter
Sven Baertschi
Ben Hutton
Chris Tanev
Alexander Edler
Jacob Markstrom
The Canucks and I have disagreed on the odd topic, but I think my list aligns relatively closely to the one they’d put together in the event of expansion. The crown jewels in their rebuild are all protected, as are their best trade chips.
Looking at the remaining players with commitments to 2017-18 and beyond, the Canucks might get saved by the expansion process. Derek Dorsett, Luca Sbisa, Linden Vey and Alex Biega are the only roster players currently committed. Although, that could change quickly depending on how active the Canucks are in free agency or via trade.
Option 2
Henrik Sedin
Daniel Sedin
Jake Virtanen
Bo Horvat
Jared McCann
Ben Hutton
Chris Tanev
Alex Edler
Jacob Markstrom
This is where things get interesting. The Canucks now run the risk of losing two players. They also have the ability to protect players without any positional restrictions. Were the Canucks particularly top-heavy at any one position, they could load that set into their protected players set. Whether they keep those players and use them to take advantage of positional needs elsewhere is entirely up to them beyond that point.

Outlook

The expansion draft has the potential set the most explosive period of transactions in NHL history. Especially if the draft is for two teams, rather than one. A team without high-end talent can acquire it using volume, or depth. And vice versa. 
Vancouver has cap space and flexibility going into this off-season. A double-edged sword, especially given the track record of this regime. Used sparingly, they can play the role of loan shark en route to the expansion draft. Save money during silly season to cash in on the mistakes of others. Might hurt the Canucks in the short term, but it could set them up for years to come.

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