Toronto Maple Leafs: Predicting the Entire Seattle Kraken Expansion Draft
By Jeff Borsuk
Chicago Blackhawks
The Chicago Blackhawks have chosen to protect:
Forwards
Jonathan Toews
Patrick Kane
Alex DeBrincat
Dylan Strome
David Kämpf
Brandon Hagel
Henrik Borgström
Defense
Connor Murphy
Caleb Jones
Riley Stillman
Goaltender
Kevin Lankinen
Prediction: The Kraken will select Nikita Zadorov. With this incredible trade for Chicago, made with Edmonton Oilers, the Blackhawks had one less defenseman to think about protecting. However, they still were unable to protect blueliners like Calvin De Haan and Zadorov. Francis will likely prefer Zadorov because he is not just very talented but he’s also 26 and can play on both the left and ride sides. He will be an RFA, coming off a contract paying $3.2million annually.
Colorado Avalanche
The Colorado Avalanche have chosen to protect:
Forwards
Mikko Rantanen
Nathan MacKinnon
André Burakovsky
Nazem Kadri
Valeri Nichushkin
Tyson Jost
Logan O’Connor
Defense
Samuel Girard
Devon Toews
Cale Makar
Goaltender
Philipp Grubauer
Prediction: The Kraken will select Joonas Donskoi. This seems like the obvious selection here. The 29-year-old is coming off a season where he registered 17 goals and 14 assists for a total of 31 points in 51 games. He is in the final year of his contract so if the Kraken do get him, they could either trade him before next season’s trade deadline or potentially lose him to free agency. He will be paid $3.9 million next season.