Expansion Draft Archives - Page 3 of 7

On May 9, 2017

In 39 days the Vegas Golden Knights will be on the Expansion Draft clock, having 72 hours to make their 30 selections and submit them to the league. The rules of this draft were made public on June 22nd of last year, the day Vegas was granted the franchise, yet still, 11 months later, there’s still confusion over exactly how this is all going to go down.

The NHL is still in discussion about the exact window for when Vegas can talk/negotiate with unprotected RFAs/UFAs from the 30 teams (con't)
— Pierre LeBrun (@PierreVLeBrun) May 8, 2017

But obviously that window will conclude at some point before June 21 when Vegas announces its expansion draft selections. (con't)
— Pierre LeBrun (@PierreVLeBrun) May 8, 2017

That's because any RFA or UFA signed by Vegas off another team before June 21 would count as its expansion draft selection off that club
— Pierre LeBrun (@PierreVLeBrun) May 8, 2017

Remember in that window, Vegas can sign an unprotected RFA like the player is its own. No offer sheet required. No compensation for the team
— Pierre LeBrun (@PierreVLeBrun) May 8, 2017

We get this question a lot so let me quickly summarize how this works, then we will get to what LeBrun is talking about. Hopefully by know you know teams can protect either seven forwards, three defensemen, and a goalie OR eight skaters and a goalie. Among those nine or 11 can be restricted free agents (RFAs) or unrestricted free agents. If a player is an RFA it means other teams will have the opportunity to offer a player a contract and his current team can then match that contract to keep the player, or let him sign with the other team. Therefore, if an RFA is left exposed in the Expansion Draft, and Vegas selects the player, his current team cannot match the offer. In regards to unrestricted free agents (free to sign with any team on July 1st) there’s only one reason to protect them for the Expansion Draft, to keep Vegas from being able to negotiate with the player before July 1st. It’s not a very good reason, and no one is likely to do it, so expect many RFAs to be protected, and almost no UFAs to be protected. (Any questions? Read this. Still don’t get it, ask in the comments)

Now, to what Pierre is talking about. There’s going to be a moment, at some point in between June 17th and June 20th when free agents are no longer available to the Golden Knights.

McPhee Still Expecting Lots Of Player Movement Before Expansion Draft

On April 28, 2017

The Expansion Draft is a little less than two months away. George McPhee are beyond prepared, but seem a bit on edge about what may happen in those 53 days before they are finally on the expansion clock.

McPhee has been talking about a redistribution of the player pool following the season that will shake up the protection lists of many players. In a recent interview with Leafs Lunch on TSN 1050 McPhee went out of his way multiple times to mention the possibility of seeing his roster change from their mock drafts as teams gear up for the draft.

Early in the season (our mock draft rosters) looked really good. (Now) It’s not bad, which I guess is a real neutral Canadian way to say things. I don’t mind it, I’m happy with what it’s looked liked recently and can only hope it looks like that when we’re done. -George McPhee

With eight teams still competing for the Stanley Cup, and very little movement on the NHL transaction list, McPhee has that “calm before the storm” feel to him, and he definitely appears concerned about what may happen before he ever gets his hands on the protection lists.

You said there’s a good chance of real good goaltenders being available, that’s a good way to express it. It looks that way now, but there could be a big redistribution of players in the weeks before the Expansion Draft. So we’ll have to see what it looks like when all the dust settles. -McPhee

The highest profile moves are likely to come at that goalie position. Everyone is afraid of losing something valuable for nothing, so most teams are going to try and be proactive by moving their assets before the Expansion Draft. It’s the reason McPhee has made it so clear in interviews with AP, the RJ, TSN, and many more that he’s more than willing to entertain any offers.

He wants a skin in the game rather than being left on the sideline. His recent comments about player redistribution feel a bit almost scared rather than what felt like he was accepting the inevitable when he talked about it a few months ago. The comment about the mock draft rosters getting worse and worse appears to have really hit home, and the reality of what his Expansion Draft roster might look like after the last round of shuffling could be a frightening sight, and it’s only getting worse.

It’ll be interesting to see and hear what McPhee looks like a few days before the draft and compare it to what he sounded like today. There’s certainly a level of concern, and more than anything, like an 11th grader preparing for the SAT, I think he’s just ready to get this thing over with.

**Here’s the full interview with Leafs Lunch on TSN 1050.**

Expansion Draft Reveal Combined With NHL Awards At T-Mobile Arena

On April 18, 2017

UPDATE 2 (10:47 AM 4/27/17) : A team source tells us tickets will go on sale for season ticket holders on Friday April 28th at 10 AM. Prices will start at $15 per ticket.

UPDATE (10:33 AM 4/19/17) : Per The Creator via email, ticket prices for the event will range from $20 in the upper deck to $40 in the best seats in the lower bowl. There will also be premium “floor seats” which are controlled by the NHL. They are expected to be priced in the $150-$300 range like previous Awards Shows.

Also, the team is working hard to ensure jerseys will be for sale at this event, but “it’s all being driven by Adidas and their timing.” It won’t be Vegas’ fault if they aren’t there for general sale on June 21st.

***

We’ve been reporting this for months now, but today the Golden Knights and the NHL finalized plans to combine the NHL Expansion Draft and the NHL Awards Show into one event at T-Mobile Arena.

The event will take place as expected on June 21st at 5PM PST and will be televised on NBCSN and SportsNet.

“We are thrilled to be in Las Vegas again for the NHL Awards. To be able to pair this perennial show with the excitement of the Expansion Draft for the Vegas Golden Knights is a unique event that we think our fans will greatly enjoy. -Steve Mayer, NHL Chief Content Officer and Executive Vice President

To recap, the protection lists are due to the NHL on Saturday June 17th at 2PM PST. They are expected to be make the lists public either Saturday night or Sunday morning. The Golden Knights must finalize their 30 selections by June 20th at 2PM PST. Then, at 27 hours later at T-Mobile Arena, we’ll learn fill in the blanks of the names we don’t find out prior to the big reveal.

During this 72 hour period, Vegas has exclusive negotiating rights with all unrestricted free agents (UFAs) and can make qualifying offers to restricted free agents (RFAs).

June 21 will be an incredible day for the city of Las Vegas and our fans. The anticipation around the Expansion Draft has been building for months and that excitement will continue to grow as we get closer to Draft Day. By combining the draft with the NHL Awards, Golden Knights fans will get to experience a monumental day in our team’s history while enjoying one of the premier NHL events that features the game’s biggest stars. -The Creator

Tickets will be available for season ticket holders to this event “in the coming days” and are NOT free like originally expected when the Expansion Draft and NHL Awards were separate. The arena will likely be set up like a concert, so approximately 15,000-20,000 tickets should be available. Prices have yet to be announced. Brace for impact though cause the NHL Awards Show tickets have ranged from around $100-350 or so a piece. Obviously these will be cheaper due to it being in an arena rather than a theatre, but don’t expect them to be cheap.

Tickets will go on sale to the general public at 10AM PST on May 3rd.

This is also the event in which the team is expected to unveil their home and away jerseys.

Expansion Draft Protection Lists Will Be Made Public

On March 29, 2017

UPDATE (9:55 AM 3/30/17) – We’re being told that plans on the NHL Awards Show are still fluid, which will impact the Golden Knights Expansion Draft reveal.

Multiple sources indicated weeks ago that The Park Theatre would be used to house the Awards with T-Mobile Arena being the home to the Expansion Draft reveal. Now, it looks like they are considering putting both events together at T-Mobile. Nothing is confirmed on either the Awards or the Expansion reveal at this time.

If the Awards show coincides in the same building with the Expansion reveal, there will almost certainly be a ticket price to get in.

***

And just like that, the Expansion Draft protection list saga is over, and the good guys win.

NHL has concluded Protected and Available Lists WILL be made public and distributed to media simultaneously with distribution to teams.
— Nick Cotsonika (@cotsonika) March 29, 2017

BREAKING: Protected and available player lists for the Vegas expansion draft WILL be made public and released likely on June 18, per NHL.
— Dan Rosen (@drosennhl) March 29, 2017

Those lists are set to be submitted to the NHL by 2:00 P.M. PT on Saturday, June 17th. Vegas then has three days to get their 30 selections in, and they will then be revealed in a nationally televised, ~~free to attend~~ event at T-Mobile Arena on Wednesday June 21st.

The general managers spoke out against the lists being made public, and The Creator even said he prefers they remain secret until the reveal on the 21st.

After a lot of internal discussion following the General Managers meeting, we determined it would be best to disclose those lists publicly. One of our guiding principles from the start of this process was to prioritize transparency, and certainly here, keeping the lists private would not have promoted that particular objective. –Bill Daly, NHL Deputy Commissioner to NHL.com

But cooler heads prevailed and the world will get to play “armchair McPhee” and pick their 30 from the list of available players right along with the Vegas GM.

Man, June is going to be fun.

The Creator Wants Protection Lists Kept Secret, He’s Wrong And Here’s Why

On March 29, 2017

The visibility of the Expansion Draft protections lists is shaping up to be quite the war between the public and the powers that be in the NHL. The GMs made it rather clear at their meetings in Boca Raton, FL a few weeks ago that they had no interest in allowing the world to see what’s going on behind the scenes of their organization, and more importantly open them up to criticism on Expansion Draft errors.

That’s all makes sense, but as a member of the working hockey media, it’s rather difficult to feel too bad for 31 gentleman who each hold one of the most envious positions in the NHL and are compensated handsomely to do the job.

But now, our own front man has come out against making the lists public, and his reasoning is completely different than that of his top employee and McPhee’s 30 colleagues.

I’d rather not have them be public. I’d rather we know what each team has left unprotected and we make our picks and it’s a big surprise. I think there’s going to be a lot of leaks though. I found one thing about the NHL that … everyone talks. So what we do is we don’t tell anybody anything. I think the impact of us announcing the people we pick from our expansion draft picks – particularly if the list of unprotected people is not made public is more dramatic, it’ll be more of a surprise. –The Creator to Puck Daddy

Now he does have a point, there’s definitely a level of interest that could be gained by having the Expansion Draft reveal be this massive surprise, but it’s a short sighted way of looking at the situation.

If the lists are made public, there will be at least three full days of speculation in which the words ‘Golden Knights’ will be at the center of. The surprise may be bigger (I disagree, and will address that in a second), but it’s also shorter.

If we learned anything from the recent Presidential election it’s that being in the news is a good thing. Every day it was something else and you couldn’t surf a website, scroll a timeline, or watch a television program without hearing the word Trump. He dominated the talk and eventually parlayed it into becoming the most powerful man in the world.

Every media member, every blogger, every fan of the sport will toy with the lists with their mind constantly on one thing, “which of these guys is going to be a Golden Knight.” VGK will be trending for a week rather than an hour.

No One But McPhee May Be Able To See Protection Lists, Even Other GMs

On March 16, 2017

This strange saga keeps getting stranger. We’ve long expected the NHL Expansion Draft protections lists to be made public the day the Golden Knights 72 hour draft period begins allowing speculation to dominate the world of sports talk. Then recently we found out the NHL may keep the lists private from the media and the pubic in what would be a giant mistake.

Now, it looks like they may even take it one step further. It’s possible no one but the Golden Knights will get to see the full lists.

The managers have expressed a preference for maintaining the confidentiality of that information. We will make a final decision in due time. There is no rush here. -Bill Daly, NHL Deputy Commissioner

The issue here, I think, is that some GMs are hesitant to let everyone else in the league see how they are ranking or otherwise valuing their own players. I would argue that they already do show their cards when they reveal how they compensate the players in terms of salary. But I suppose that, if lower-paid players end up getting protected over higher-paid players in some cases, teams might not want that kind of naked truth being blatantly blasted out there for posterity. –Pierre LeBrun, ESPN

Before you go nuts about how ridiculous this is, let me take a moment to explain why this is the only way as a Golden Knights fan you should be okay with them not making the lists available to the public.

NHL Will Televise Expansion Draft Unveil

On March 9, 2017

After this pesky 30 team hockey season going on right now comes to a close, the eyes of the hockey universe will all be focused on Las Vegas.

The Expansion Draft takes place from June 18th to the 20th with the unveiling of the rosters on the 21st. The NHL Awards show is expected to be the same day, and finally we’ve got some clarity on how the NHL plans on showing the world the 30 players George McPhee selected in the Expansion Draft.

In a conversation with Puck Daddy at the league general managers meetings about the upcoming NHL Awards, chief content officer Steve Mayer mentioned that the NHL will look to televise both the awards and the announcement of the expansion roster of the Vegas Golden Knights around same timeframe Las Vegas. It’s currently unclear, which television partner the NHL will use for the expansion draft. –Josh Cooper, Puck Daddy

Before you jump down anyone’s throat saying, “they should televise the draft itself!” read this, then come back and finish this article.

It is a step in the right direction that the league has confirmed it will indeed show the reveal of the picks, hopefully on NBC or at least NBCSN.

The Creator has said on multiple occasions that the Expansion Draft reveal will be at T-Mobile Arena, will be open to the public, and he wants to announce a pick once every five minutes. With the event being on TV, they’ll likely have to speed it up a bit, but it should be a memorable event no matter how it actually goes down. The Creator has even gone as far as saying he expects the building to be at max capacity, which would be amazing.

The Golden Knights are expected to unveil their jerseys at the Expansion Draft reveal as well.

As for the NHL Awards Show, we have multiple sources who have told us the preliminary plans are to hold it at The Park Theater right next door to T-Mobile Arena. Previous Awards shows have been at the Hard Rock, Wynn, and Palms, but there’s no denying now that MGM has a theatre the correct size (around 4,000), they’ll want to keep the NHL’s events all in the family.

The news of televising the reveal isn’t surprising in the least, but with the recent revelations of the league considering not making the protection lists public during the Expansion Draft, we’ve learned not to take anything for granted.

@Real_ESPNLeBrun but again, no final decision on this, although certainly league got the GMs stated feedback on it
— Pierre LeBrun (@Real_ESPNLeBrun) March 8, 2017

So, good job NHL on televising the reveal. For sure change your mind on the protection lists though, and also let’s try and put the reveal on TV somewhere people will actually watch it, and by that I mean not NHL Network.

Stagnant Salary Cap Good News For Golden Knights

On March 6, 2017

The NHL GM Meetings kick off from Boca Raton today with Golden Knights GM George McPhee finally allowed to be a part. The 31 general managers will discuss things like coaches challenges, the offside rule, bye weeks, concussion protocol, among many other rules and regulations.

There’s one that’s particularly interesting to Vegas though, and it has nothing to do with the Expansion Draft. It’s the salary cap and how projections are for it to remain stagnant rather than the normal annual increase.

The NHL apparently anticipates the cap to remain flat next season, with little if any increase projected over this year’s $73 million ceiling. So the major-market franchises that drive NHL revenue and successful clubs that habitually are cap teams get hammered again in attempting to maintain — or improve — their personnel while the small market clubs go along for the ride. –Larry Brooks, New York Post

If this does indeed come true, which we should find out sometime over the next three days, it’s a win for the Golden Knights.

We’ve always known that teams are going to be looking for a way to dump contracts on McPhee, which he has a plan for.

I’m not taking on any bad contracts unless someone wants to pay us to take on a bad contract. I’m really not interested in that, we’ll claim somebody else if we have to. -George McPhee

With the cap not increasing, teams like Chicago, Tampa Bay, Pittsburgh, Detroit, and a host of others who are already up against it will have some tough decisions to make.

If A Deal Was Done For Eric Fehr, Why And What Would Vegas Get?

On March 4, 2017