Fantasy Mock Draft for a New Expansion NHL Franchise in Arizona

With the Arizona Coyotes' relocation to Utah for the start of the 2024-25 season there is now an opening for a team in the desert. It seems likely NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman will try and give the Phoenix market another team, especially since he tried so hard to get the Coyotes to work there.

Phoenix Suns owner Mat Ishbia has stated he'd like to bring hockey back to Arizona and is one of the few people who has the money to make it happen.

So now that we have spent the past month-and-a-half analyzing all of the moves around the NHL, it is time to take advantage of the slow time and dig into the hypothetical. Specifically, what would an expansion draft for a new Arizona franchise look like this offseason.

Well, I will take you on that journey and try to do a mock expansion draft for a hypothetical Arizona franchise.

We are using the same rules that Seattle had when it entered the league a couple of years ago.

That includes: My team has to pick at least 14 forwards, nine defensemen and three goaltenders. I must have at least 20 players under contract for the upcoming season. My team also must be salary cap compliant, both above the league's salary floor and below the league's salary cap.

The other 32 teams in the league have the option of either protecting seven forwards, three defenders and one goalie, or eight skaters (any combination of forward and defense) and one goalie.

No-movement clauses must also be honored and protected unless the player agrees to waive them.

So with all of that said, let us get to our hypothetical Arizona expansion draft.

Let's start off with something bold.

Gibson has not been an elite goalie for about five years now and is coming off his second consecutive sub-.900 save percentage season and is still owed over $6 million per year for another three seasons.

I would look at this as an opportunity for the Ducks to jettison his contract, and for an expansion team to try and get something out of Anaheim (a pick, a prospect, something) for the trouble of taking it in the expansion draft.

It would not be an ideal goalie situation to start with, but Gibson could use a fresh start and an expansion team could try to get something back along with it.

Frederic is the perfect Bruin given his style of play.

He plays a big, strong, powerful game and will mix things up physically. He is also pretty productive, scoring at least 17 goals in the past two seasons. The Bruins would probably hate to risk losing him, but their protected spots would fill up quickly given the high-end talent and better players on the roster.

He is entering a contract year and will be an unrestricted free agent after this season so along with being a good player that could make an immediate impact, he would also serve as a potentially valuable trade chip for a first-year franchise that would need to build up assets for the future.

We'll assume that Buffalo would take the eight-skaters approach and protect its top four on defense -- Rasmus Dahlin, Owen Power, Mattias Samuelsson and Bowen Byram.

While that could leave some productive forwards available, it certainly wouldn't be anyone that moves the needle given the players that would not be eligible, as well as the four forwards they would likely protect (Tage Thompson and Dylan Cozens being at the top of the list).

Jokiharju has not developed into a star, but he is an NHL caliber defenseman that could play a second-or third-pairing role at a pretty affordable price ($3.1 million). Like Frederic, he is also a pending free agent after this season that would have trade value at the deadline.

The Flames' roster is a list of bad options and uninspiring options. Sometimes in expansion drafts, there are some teams where you just make a pick because you have to fill a roster spot.

This is one of those situations.

Players like Jonathan Huberdeau and Nazem Kadri have no-movement clauses that will keep them protected, and even if they were not their contracts would not be worth the time. Calgary's defensive depth is thin, and even then players like MacKenzie Weegar and Rasmus Andersson would certainly be protected.

My expansion team needs goaltending depth in the organization, so I am going to take Vladar in the hopes that he can provide some.

Now we are getting a little interesting.

We'll say that Carolina will take the eight-skaters approach because of the defenseman it would have to protect. Jalen Chatfield has a no-move clause, which means he has to be protected, while you have to assume Dmitry Orlov, Brent Burns and Jaccob Slavin would take priority because of how important they are to the blue line.

That would allow them to protect Andrei Svechnikov, Sebastian Aho, Seth Jarvis and Martin Necas at forward.

Kotkaniemi is an intriguing option because he is a very good player who does a lot of things well, but he hasn't taken a big leap forward offensively. He has topped the 30-point mark one time and is coming off a 12-goal, 27-point season. He carries a pretty high price tag ($4.8 million for the next four seasons) for what he produces, but I would look past that to get a solid two-way option that might still have a chance to reach another level offensively.

After spending the 2021-22 season as part of the Seattle expansion season, Donato would be a solid pick out of Chicago in this hypothetical expansion draft.

Donato is a solid veteran who can score 15 goals, but he's probably not going to make Chicago's protected list, which would suddenly fill up pretty quickly after some nice free-agent additions this offseason.

Donato is fairly cheap ($2 million) and has no long-term risk as he would be a free agent after this season.

The top of the Avalanche roster is outstanding and they have seven forwards that would easily need to be protected when you start going through Nathan MacKinnon, Mikko Rantanen, Casey Mittelstadt, Arturri Lehkonen, and Jonathan Drouin among others.

O'Connor would probably not be among that group even though he is coming off of a career year that saw him score 13 goals in only 57 games. He would be an attractive expansion draft option because he can provide depth scoring, he is still dirt cheap against the salary cap (just a little more than $1 million against the salary cap) and has very little short-term or long-term risk.

Defenseman Josh Manson might also be an option if he was not one of the three defensemen protected here, but his contract is a little much for what he does.

Just like with Calgary, this is another team where the potential available options would be pretty weak and either limited to unproductive players or bad contracts.

Or in some cases, both.

Tarasov is coming off a respectable 2023-24 season that saw him post a .908 save percentage in 24 games, and he is still only 24 years old. With the unpredictability of goaltenders, it might be wise to just throw a bunch against the wall and see who sticks.

Tarasov might have a chance, and if nothing else can provide some early organizational depth at the position.

The Stars believed in Lundkvist so much that they traded a first-round pick to the New York Rangers for him in the hopes he could become a mainstay on their defense.

It just never worked out (at least not yet), and by the time the 2023-24 playoffs rolled around, he was a non-factor in the Stars lineup. He was getting a uniform, but he was barely playing.

There still might be some untapped potential in there, and an expansion team would be a great place to try and figure out if he can reach it. There would be minimal pressure, and zero team expectations and if it did not work, it would be no big deal to move on. Roll the dice and see what happens.

Would the Red Wings leave Rasmussen unprotected?

It might be given, especially since he is signed long-term to a pretty affordable rate and is a solid complementary scorer. But the Red Wings also have some big-time core players and a lot of veterans with trade protections that would quickly fill up their seven-forward protection list, which could leave Rasmussen exposed.

He is far from a star or somebody that you want to build an organization around, but for his $3 million salary cap number he would be a nice player to have, especially in the middle of his prime years where he still might have another level to reach offensively.

Given the forward depth, it is given that Edmonton would take the seven-forward, three-defenseman approach to its protection list, and the three defenders would almost certainly be Evan Bouchard (because he's really good), Mattias Ekholm (also because he is really good) and Darnell Nurse (because he has a no-movement clause).

The available list of forwards would be fairly weak and not really worth the time, and while Broberg has not really panned out he is still only 23 years old and a talented player that has -- at times -- shown flashes of potential. Getting a chance to play meaningful minutes in a new situation could perhaps help jumpstart his career.

The Panthers could potentially have some interesting forwards available (Evan Rodrigues? Eetu Luostarinen?) but I would pass on them and take a chance on Knight as a potential long-term option in goal.

He is still signed for a couple of more years at over $4 million per season and has No. 1 goalie ability, even if it has not all come together yet. He would almost certainly be available here as Florida's starter, Sergei Bobrovsky, is coming off a Stanley Cup win and a Vezina caliber season.

Knight did not play in the NHL during the 2023-24 season and had a .905 save percentage with Charlotte of the American Hockey League.

Unless the Kings wanted to risk leaving a good forward unprotected they would probably only protect three defenders.

Drew Doughty would almost certainly be one of them, as would Mikey Andersson. Vladislav Gavrikov would also need to be protected because he -- for some reason -- has a no-movement clause in his contract.

That could leave the 23-year-old Spence out there for the taking.

He is signed for two years at $1.5 million per season and is coming off a 24-point season in 71 games for the Kings this past season. He might not be a star or a foundational piece for the defense, but he has a shot to be a strong regular and contributor for the foreseeable future.

Middleton had a career year for the Wild during the 2023-24 season and was rewarded with a new contract extension this offseason.

He does have a no-movement clause that kicks in at the start of the 2025-26 season (when his new contract begins) but that would not yet exist this season. Meaning he might end up on the unprotected list.

Most of the defenders picked are younger players or reclamation projects. I need a solid veteran to bring some leadership, and Middleton would fill that role nicely.

While the Canadiens' roster does have some impressive young talent, it is not a particularly deep roster at either forward or defense.

Whether or not the Canadiens went with the seven forwards/three defensemen protection list, or the eight skaters, there is little chance that Evans would fit into either spot.

He would also fit into my strategy of taking cheaper players with no long-term commitment risk that could flipped at the deadline.

I don't want to saddle my new team with many bad contracts and want to keep maximum flexibility for the future. Evans makes $1 million this season and is eligible for unrestricted free agency after the season.

I figure he scores me 12 goals before the deadline and I can flip him for a draft pick.

Fabbro has spent six years as a regular on the Nashville blue line.

While he has been a solid depth piece he has not been so good that the Predators would feel forced into protecting him, especially with the list of players ahead of him on the depth chart that would need to be protected, either due to contract situations or their importance to the team.

Still, Fabbro would be a good bottom-pairing defenseman to stash on my roster, and like so many others, is a pending free agent after the season.

The Devils have so much depth that they're almost certain to lose a good player here.

Siegenthaler would be that player on my expansion team.

He blossomed into a quality defender after arriving in New Jersey a couple of years ago. He consistently posts strong underlying numbers and defensive metrics while playing close to 20 minutes per game. He would get an opportunity to be one of the top defensemen on my expansion team.

He is one of the few players I would grab that is signed long-term, but his $3.4 million salary cap number is a potential bargain against the cap.

This is all about taking a chance and giving a talented player a fresh start.

Wahlstrom has a tremendous shot and strong offensive skills, but things have simply not clicked for him on Long Island. If he is going to become a consistent, steady NHL player, it just seems like it is not going to be with the Islanders.

He needs a change, and I would be willing to give him that opportunity.

He has just nine goals over the past two years in 68 regular season games, including just two this past season. Nothing about that stands out, but he would be an intriguing player to roll the dice on and see if he can figure it out. Maybe he could be my William Karlsson where getting picked up by an expansion team jumpstarts his career and helps him realize his potential.

The New York Rangers have not given Jones a consistent chance to be an NHL regular even though his skillset (a puck-mover) is exactly what they need on their blue line.

I am going to give him that chance, and I might be rewarded for it.

Jones being unprotected would simply be the result of him losing out on a numbers game as the Rangers have so many other defenders ahead of him that they would probably choose to protect first (certainly Adam Fox and K'Andre Miller).

He has only appeared in 69 NHL games over parts of four seasons, but he has 17 points in those games and has shown the potential to be a top-four defender.

Amadio signed with the Senators in free agency this summer, and it would probably be a really short trip for him into Canada's capital city.

There is no way Ottawa does not protect seven forwards, and there is also no way he would be among those seven.

He would be a strong expansion pick as he has developed into a very capable depth scorer who has scored 30 goals over the past two seasons. His three-year contract term is longer than I might want, but at $2.6 million he is a fair value that will not crush my salary cap.

Do I want Rasmus Ristolainen as a player? Not really.

That contract ($5.1 million per season for another three years) is a problem, and does not represent a good value for what Ristolainen brings to the table.

But my thought process here is that Philadelphia might feel the same way, and would also probably want to get out from underneath that contract. So just like with Anaheim and John Gibson, I am going to use this as an opportunity to try and essentially "buy" a draft pick or prospect away from the Flyers.

I will take Ristolainen's contract if you give me something to entice me. Philadelphia might do that to help clear out its very complicated salary cap situation.

This is not a great roster to be picking from for an expansion draft.

It is one of the league's oldest rosters, the few good players on the team are easily on the protected list, and there are a lot of bad contracts I would not want to touch with a 10-foot pole.

There is also nobody that is particularly young that I could start building around.

So I am just going to take Puljujarvi, his cheap contract, and let him play strong fourth-line minutes where he defends well, drives possession and scores the occasional goal every few weeks.

The Sharks' roster is no longer devoid of talent after this offseason, but it is also not particularly deep. The few expansion draft-eligible players on here that would be worth taking are going to be easily protected without much issue or many hard decisions, and it is going to leave me with pretty slim pickings.

Kostin might be among the best of those available options.

He accounts for $2 million against the salary cap this season before becoming a restricted free agent.

He has never really put it all together to become a steady NHL player, but he has scored 10 goals before and could be a suitable depth option.

Tolvanen can be a little streaky offensively, but when he gets on a roll he can score goals in bunches.

He is signed for two more years at $3.475 million per season and is only going to be 25 years old this season. That is typically when scorers hit their peak production, and given his talent and the opportunity he would have to play top-six minutes I could see him becoming a 20-25 goal-scorer in the right situation.

This could be the situation.

Sundqvist is not going to wow anybody with his offense or playmaking, but even expansion teams need somebody that can play tough, defensive-minded minutes.

Sundqvist can absolutely be that player.

He is a very good defensive presence and would anchor my bottom six in my expansion season. He is signed for two more years at $1.5 million per season, which is a fine value for what he brings to the table defensively.

I also know his size and defense make him the type of player I can trade at deadline time for a second or third-round pick without breaking a sweat.

As great as Tampa Bay is and has been, this is another team where your expansion draft options are going to be mostly uninspiring.

The Lightning's current lineup is extraordinarily top-heavy, and all of the good players are going to be easily protected.

I am going to take Chaffee just to use as organizational depth.

You still need to stock an AHL roster, and this helps me do that.

I can't see Toronto protecting more than three defensemen, and given the no-movement clauses for Morgan Rielly and Chris Tanev, they are going to take up two of those spots right from the start.

Liljegren should probably be the third, but I could see Toronto's front office valuing Oliver Ekman-Larsson enough to make him the third. Because if they didn't value him they probably wouldn't have spent $14 million over the next four years to sign him.

Their mistake will be my reward and allow me to take Liljegren, who will instantly become one of my top blue-line options.

Utah has spent significant resources over the past couple of years to revamp its defense, and that might result in it going with the eight-skater protection list so it can guarantee that it keeps Mikhail Sergachv, John Marino, Sean Durzi and Juuso Valimaki.

That might open the door for Crouse to be left exposed.

Crouse is not a star by any stretch, but he is a big, strong power forward who has scored at least 20 goals in each of the past three seasons. He is signed for three more years at $4.3 million per season and would become one of my go-to offensive players early on.

Vancouver's roster has become surprisingly deep over the past couple of years, and while it could probably protect Garland if it wanted, I could also see this as a situation where it might look to shed some salary and dangle him out there on the unprotected list.

Garland's name has been mentioned in trade speculation for more than a year, and the Canucks do need more salary cap flexibility over the next couple of years.

Garland still counts more than $4.9 million against the salary cap for two more seasons.

He is a 20-goal, 50-point forward and if I could get him in the expansion draft he would be one of my top players from the start and become a key part of my offense.

It's another roster where an expansion team would probably be picking from a rather uninspired list of available players.

Vegas' lineup is top-heavy and all of its best players will be easily protected, and I really can't see a situation where there would be any surprises.

Kolesar can come in and provide some fourth-line or bottom-six depth where I know I can pencil him in for seven or eight goals and around 20 points. I know I can pencil him in for that because that is exactly what he has done for the past three seasons.

Milano had AN outstanding season for the Capitals in 2023-24, scoring 15 goals in only 49 games. Granted, that came along with a 30-percent shooting percentage that is in no way sustainable long-term, but he has still scored 40 goals over the past three seasons in only 145 games. That averages out to a 22-goal pace over 82 games, which would be fine middle-six goal-scoring production at a steal of a price (only $1.9 million against the salary cap over the next two seasons).

Milano will not turn an expansion team into a contender, but a good value is a good value and you would be wise to take it when the opportunity presents itself.

Picking Stanley is done with the same mindset behind the Lundkvist (Dallas) and Wahlstrom (New York Islanders) picks.

A talented, once promising prospect that has all of the tools but has simply never been able to put it together.

Stanley is the type of player that will always get a look from NHL teams because of his size on defense, and I am going to be one of those general managers that tries to get something out of it. Will it work? Probably not. But I have nothing to lose early on and expansion teams have the luxury of taking on these projects.