Projecting the Bruins’ protection list for Seattle expansion draft
The Seattle Kraken are coming.
Welcomed in as the league’s 32nd team, the Kraken will drop the puck and officially join the party later this year.
But before that happens, they’re going to poach at least one player from 30 teams (the Vegas Golden Knights are excluded from this draft after striking a deal that prevents them from any of the Kraken’s expansion fee money), including the Boston Bruins.
Now, the rules for the teams looking to keep their most viable pieces away from the Kraken are pretty simple. You can choose to keep either eight forwards/defensemen and a goalie or go with a seven-forward, three-defenseman, one goalie protection plan. Players with no-move clauses have to be protected unless the player agrees to waive it to be exposed to Seattle.
As for the players exposed to the Kraken, every team’s exposed list must have at least two forwards and one defenseman under contract for 2021-22 and who has played in at least 40 NHL games the prior season (or 70 NHL games in the prior two seasons), as well as a goalie who is under contract in 2021-22 or will be a restricted free agent at the end of his current contract.
The Kraken can also negotiate with one of your team’s pending unrestricted free agents during an exclusive four-day window that begins this weekend and should they sign that player, that would count as their pick from your team.
And with the protection list due this Saturday afternoon, here’s a look at who the Bruins, who will most likely maximize their protection list by going with the 7-3-1 format over the 8-1 format, are likely to keep away from Seattle.
Forwards
Aug 31, 2020; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Boston Bruins right wing David Pastrnak (88) celebrates his goal against the Tampa Bay Lightning with center Patrice Bergeron (left) and left wing Brad Marchand (63) during the 2020 Stanley Cup Playoffs. (Dan Hamilton/USA TODAY Sports)
Patrice Bergeron: One of four Bruins with no-move clauses, Bergeron is coming off 23-goal, 48-point season and is actually entering the final year of his contract next season. Bergeron, who turns 36 later this month, is going to take his future on a year-to-year basis. But that future does not include Seattle.
Charlie Coyle: Another Bruin with a no-trade, the Bruins did not ask Coyle to waive his no-trade to make himself available to the Kraken, and that’s not a surprise. The Bruins’ organizational depth at center is a tad suspect, and there’s hope that Coyle will rebound after surgery to address multiple knee injuries sustained during the 2021 season.
Jake DeBrusk: It was not a good season for the 24-year-old DeBrusk. He bounced all around the Boston lineup, was scratched on numerous occasions, and ended his year talking about his “haters.” (Probably hard to ignore them when you’re coming off a 5-9-14 in 41 season, I know, but that’s probably the last thing people wanted to hear.) But DeBrusk is still too valuable to the Bruins to simply let him walk to the Kraken. If the Bruins are bailing on DeBrusk in 2021, or at any point for that matter, they have to know it’s gotta be for something real (or something at all) in return.
Trent Frederic: If you were ranking this one through seven, Frederic is your bubble guy. It’s going to be either Frederic or Nick Ritchie protected with the B’s seventh and final forward protection slot. But given the Bruins’ commitment to Frederic (they signed him ahead of the expansion draft while Ritchie remains unsigned), you’d almost have to give him the edge. The Bruins are also five years removed from selecting Frederic in the first round, and started to see what he can be at the NHL level this past season. He’s already circled some areas of improvement to become an NHL regular.
Mar 3, 2021; Boston, Massachusetts: Washington Capitals right wing Tom Wilson (43) is spilled by Boston Bruins center Trent Frederic (11) during the second period at TD Garden. (Winslow Townson/USA TODAY Sports)
Brad Marchand: Another no-move clause owner, and one of the best players in the league.
David Pastrnak: No trade protection to his name, but again, another superstar.
Craig Smith: Signed to a true value contract at $3.1 million per year for the next two seasons, Smith is a lock to be protected by the Bruins. Especially after the Bruins saw what Smith can do for their top-six with a strong second-half finish (seven goals and 18 points in 23 games) and how he looks like a perfect fit for the Taylor Hall-David Krejci duo. (The Bruins, by the way, are reportedly making progress on an extension with Hall, and it seems like Boston or bust for Krejci).
Best available for Kraken: Curtis Lazar, Chris Wagner, Nick Ritchie (RFA), Ondrej Kase (RFA).
Defensemen
Apr 25, 2019; Boston, MA, USA; Blue Jackets center Matt Duchene (95) battles for the puck against Bruins defensemen Matt Grzelcyk (48) and Charlie McAvoy (73) in Game 1 of the second round of the 2019 Stanley Cup Playoffs at TD Garden. (Greg M. Cooper/USA TODAY Sports)
Brandon Carlo: The Bruins just inked Carlo to a six-year extension, so that should tell you how they view him entering this year’s expansion draft. He’ll be protected. Now comes figuring out who his partner will be moving forward.
Matt Grzelcyk: One of the reasons the Bruins opted to move on from Torey Krug last offseason was because they knew they would only have three protection spots available when the expansion draft came around, and if Krug’s contract came with a no-trade clause (which it would have), and that Grzelcyk would’ve been lost for nothing. They ultimately chose Grzelcyk. Hard to imagine that changing now, especially given his chemistry with McAvoy down the stretch. The 5-foot-9 defender also averaged the 15th-most points per game (0.54) among left-shot defensemen with at least 35 games played in 2021.
Charlie McAvoy: We are officially entering the Chucky Norris Era of McAvoy’s game.
Best available for Kraken: Connor Clifton, Jeremy Lauzon, Jakub Zboril.
Goaltender
NEWARK, NEW JERSEY – SEPTEMBER 16: Dan Vladar #80 of the Boston Bruins skates against the New Jersey Devils during preseason action at the Prudential Center on September 16, 2019 in Newark, New Jersey. (Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)
The Bruins are going to protect Daniel Vladar with their lone goaltending slot. This one is pretty cut and dry, too. Jaroslav Halak and Tuukka Rask are both pending unrestricted free agents, Jeremy Swayman doesn’t have enough professional experience to be eligible for the expansion draft, and 2021 taxi squader Callum Booth is only other goalie the B’s could protect.
Vladar, who could very well be the Bruins’ backup to begin the season, went 2-2-1 with an .885 save percentage for the Bruins last season. His performance was a lot better than that save percentage would indicate, too, as Vladar was straight-up abandoned and behind an AHL-level defense in his final outing of the season (an 8-1 loss to the Capitals).
Ty Anderson is a writer and columnist for 985TheSportsHub.com. Any opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect those of 98.5 The Sports Hub, Beasley Media Group, or any subsidiaries. Yell at him on Twitter: @_TyAnderson.
