Ryan Wilson: Drafting Las Vegas: Part One Drafting Las Vegas: Part One

Nice dig at Doughty.

I love how a stupid list made an organization that can't put together a website has gotten so many people's panties in a bunch

Not picking Lehtonen??

Ryan Hartman 100% over MacNeil

On the isles Brock Nelson will def be protected n so will Pulock......
DeHaan will be exposed over Pulock

Way to drag this out as long as you can Ryan. Could have been done in 2 blogs but if you have to make it 10 then it's not like anyone is going to stop reading. I used the same tool you used and the team I came up with was much different.

Way to drag this out as long as you can Ryan. Could have been done in 2 blogs but if you have to make it 10 then it's not like anyone is going to stop reading. I used the same tool you used and the team I came up with was much different.
- Dcoms

It's August....why not stretch it out

• The Las Vegas franchise must select one player from each presently existing club for a total of 30 players (not including additional players who may be acquired as the result of violations of the Expansion Draft rules).

I thought this was the most interesting statement in the article, it's also the 1st time I've seen a reference to penalties for Expansion Draft rules violations. I'm not sure I fully understand what they're trying to say but it sounds to me like they're saying that if they feel a team is trying to circumvent the protection process then the league may overrule the teams and make players that aren't initially available eligible to be drafted. Could this have anything to do with the popular fan idea of having hand-shake agreements with pending FAs but not actually signing them until after the expansion draft as a means of protecting them without having to protect them?

• The Las Vegas franchise must select a minimum of 20 players who are under contract for the 2017-18 season.

I also found this pretty interesting, if they have to select 20 that are under contract for 2017-2018 does that mean that they can draft 10 players who aren't under contract aka free agents? I'm not sure how this would work because obviously they would only hold the rights of the FA player until free agency starts but this again could be a serious road block in the "protecting pending FAs with hand-shake deals" plan.

Way to drag this out as long as you can Ryan. Could have been done in 2 blogs but if you have to make it 10 then it's not like anyone is going to stop reading. I used the same tool you used and the team I came up with was much different.
- Dcoms

I wish the generalfanager tool was like the old roster construction tool where once you completed the Expansion draft you could publish or share the roster. I think it would be really interesting to see the different mindsets on how the process played out.

I understand the perameters of your rules and I respect that you stayed away from speculating trades (making it so C-Bus has to lose a good player although I think it's a pretty safe bet they protect Boone over Cam), but I think you missed the mark when you made Rackel exposed. Rackel is currently Anaheim's third best offensive forward behind Getzlaf and Perry, and will probably be their third best forward period by next season. I think they'd certainly protect him over Silferberg who's a pretty standard middle six two way guy, and may even leave Fowler unprotected and lose him for nothing before exposing Rackel.

My guess is that Fowler is traded eventually before expansion and Anaheim goes the standard 7 F, 3 D rout. Again I respect that wasn't in the rules you had for yourself, but even if things remain equal Anaheim would not expose Rackel.

I thought this was the most interesting statement in the article, it's also the 1st time I've seen a reference to penalties for Expansion Draft rules violations. I'm not sure I fully understand what they're trying to say but it sounds to me like they're saying that if they feel a team is trying to circumvent the protection process then the league may overrule the teams and make players that aren't initially available eligible to be drafted. Could this have anything to do with the popular fan idea of having hand-shake agreements with pending FAs but not actually signing them until after the expansion draft as a means of protecting them without having to protect them?
- jaydogg1974

Nope. It's to do with teams not having players with enough games played left unprotected. Handshake agreements isn't against the rules. And it's not "popular fan theory" it's "as is traditionally done at expansion drafts."

I also found this pretty interesting, if they have to select 20 that are under contract for 2017-2018 does that mean that they can draft 10 players who aren't under contract aka free agents? I'm not sure how this would work because obviously they would only hold the rights of the FA player until free agency starts but this again could be a serious road block in the "protecting pending FAs with hand-shake deals" plan.
- jaydogg1974

Yes, they can select upcoming UFA's. They always could, and it isn't a roadblock to having a planned contract with one, because it just gets signed a week after expansion draft instead of a day after.

Them having to select 20 under contract is because the league doesn't want them to plan on building the team entirely in free agency, in case no one decides to sign there; or losing an entire team of RFA's to offer sheets or other leagues and being in a similar situation.

I understand the perameters of your rules and I respect that you stayed away from speculating trades (making it so C-Bus has to lose a good player although I think it's a pretty safe bet they protect Boone over Cam), but I think you missed the mark when you made Rackel exposed. Rackel is currently Anaheim's third best offensive forward behind Getzlaf and Perry, and will probably be their third best forward period by next season. I think they'd certainly protect him over Silferberg who's a pretty standard middle six two way guy, and may even leave Fowler unprotected and lose him for nothing before exposing Rackel.

My guess is that Fowler is traded eventually before expansion and Anaheim goes the standard 7 F, 3 D rout. Again I respect that wasn't in the rules you had for yourself, but even if things remain equal Anaheim would not expose Rackel.
- Victoro311

Couldn't agree more. Even under the perimeters of the exercise I just don't see Silverberg being protected over Rakell in the 4F-4D format. Rakell is 2 years younger, still has team control as an RFA, out-produced Silverberg in 2015-2016 and has much more upside imo. May guess is much like anything else RW only looked at the possession numbers and made his decisions solely on that information.

If Scott Hartnell is bought out he would be worth trying to sign to a fair deal. He would be a much better top six wing option than whats available to us now. I have spoken with guys who have been around Hartnell in training camp and pre season and they all say he is actually a great guy and really has no ego. He just plays to piss people off.

Nope. It's to do with teams not having players with enough games played left unprotected. Handshake agreements isn't against the rules. And it's not "popular fan theory" it's "as is traditionally done at expansion drafts."



Yes, they can select upcoming UFA's. They always could, and it isn't a roadblock to having a planned contract with one, because it just gets signed a week after expansion draft instead of a day after.

Them having to select 20 under contract is because the league doesn't want them to plan on building the team entirely in free agency, in case no one decides to sign there; or losing an entire team of RFA's to offer sheets or other leagues and being in a similar situation.
- Antilles

How can a contract be signed a week later if that player is on LV's roster because they selected him in the expansion draft?

Using a player like Michael Del Zotto who is an upcoming FA and who many seem to think won't be resigned during the season so that Philly won't have to use a protection spot on, even if he and Philly have a handshake agreement on a contract for 4.5M/year, do you really expect him to honor that is LV drafts him and then offers him more money and more term? It could be quite the risk for teams tight against the cap because LV could draft them and then offer them money that their original teams couldn't offer.

If Scott Hartnell is bought out he would be worth trying to sign to a fair deal. He would be a much better top six wing option than whats available to us now. I have spoken with guys who have been around Hartnell in training camp and pre season and they all say he is actually a great guy and really has no ego. He just plays to piss people off.
- Grinder47

Hard Pass.

If Scott Hartnell is bought out he would be worth trying to sign to a fair deal. He would be a much better top six wing option than whats available to us now. I have spoken with guys who have been around Hartnell in training camp and pre season and they all say he is actually a great guy and really has no ego. He just plays to piss people off.
- Grinder47

Handshake agreements won't count as rule violation. To be honest I don't really believe in handshake agreements...it would be a rare situation where both sides will honor something like that. With UFA for the player coming very soon after the expansion draft I'd assume most players will do a stamkos and test the market.

Violation will have to come from somewhere else.

leave grigo alone

How can a contract be signed a week later if that player is on LV's roster because they selected him in the expansion draft?

Using a player like Michael Del Zotto who is an upcoming FA and who many seem to think won't be resigned during the season so that Philly won't have to use a protection spot on, even if he and Philly have a handshake agreement on a contract for 4.5M/year, do you really expect him to honor that is LV drafts him and then offers him more money and more term? It could be quite the risk for teams tight against the cap because LV could draft them and then offer them money that their original teams couldn't offer.
- jaydogg1974

Why the (frank) would LV draft a free agent though? It's the same concept as trading for negotiation rights, which is generally a bad idea to begin with, but the opportunity cost is also higher because you're passing taking a different player under contract for no assets.

There's no feesable blocks against handshake agreements. As sdtulli (sorry for botching the name I know I did) mentioned, teams are taking a considerable risk by not signing guys to a new contract and instead settling on a handshake that said players are not beheld to at all. If a handshake player's star rises too high, he'd be a fool not to reneg by seasons' end and walk if the team doesn't meet the new asking price. The only way to block handshakes is by making a rule that teams who haven't signed a UFA that played for their club the previous season by the expansion draft can't resign that UFA at all, which would be a super lame rule.

So midnight is when Vesey becomes a UFA, right? Haven't heard us linked to him at all recently.

Also, Radim Vrbata just signed for $1M....if we don't get Vesey, might be prudent to get in contact with Hudler.

Way to drag this out as long as you can Ryan. Could have been done in 2 blogs but if you have to make it 10 then it's not like anyone is going to stop reading. I used the same tool you used and the team I came up with was much different.

Is there ever a time you come in here and dont female dog? Write your own blog if youre so much better at it. Let see how many readers you get.

So midnight is when Vesey becomes a UFA, right? Haven't heard us linked to him at all recently.

Also, Radim Vrbata just signed for $1M....if we don't get Vesey, might be prudent to get in contact with Hudler.
- YouMeAndDupuis9

My guess is that if Chicago doesn't get Vesey, Hudler becomes a Blackhawk. The fit makes too much sense.

I can't wait for the Vesey saga to end. I don't fault him for taking advantage of a loophole (which Betman needs to close yesterday), but the media circus surrounding this has been outrageous. If that kid from Michigan who should have won the Hoby Baker had gotten it (Connor I think his name is), this whole thing would have been not that much more clownish than Kevin Hayes. But damn it he won the Hockey Heisman so now he's a McDavid level can't miss guy!

Give it a rest already, media...

Why the (frank) would LV draft a free agent though? It's the same concept as trading for negotiation rights, which is generally a bad idea to begin with, but the opportunity cost is also higher because you're passing taking a different player under contract for no assets.

There's no feesable blocks against handshake agreements. As sdtulli (sorry for botching the name I know I did) mentioned, teams are taking a considerable risk by not signing guys to a new contract and instead settling on a handshake that said players are not beheld to at all. If a handshake player's star rises too high, he'd be a fool not to reneg by seasons' end and walk if the team doesn't meet the new asking price. The only way to block handshakes is by making a rule that teams who haven't signed a UFA that played for their club the previous season by the expansion draft can't resign that UFA at all, which would be a super lame rule.
- Victoro311

Not saying that it would be common but in certain cases why not take a chance that you could sign an elite level player over drafting from the remaining scraps who provide little to no value. Obviously it's hard to give examples because there's no way of knowing who will or won't be resigned by the expansion draft but looking at a few players that are currently unsigned and comparing them to the players available in the exercise, why not take a chance on a hoping to be able to sign a players like Burns, Marleau, Thorton or Wngels over players like Nieto, Dillion or Schemlko who will likely provide an benefits to the team? St. Louis is a very similar situation with guys like Shattenkirk, Steen and Berguland being potential UFAs and not much available for selection in Paajarvi or Gunnarsson.

Basically it comes down to taking a player that stinks and provides next to nothing or taking a chance at landing real value with a good player if you're able to resign that player. One of the biggest roadblocks for LV in the early going to the lack of top end talent or difference makers and while there is some risk involved this could be a solid way to land that level of player.

At the end of the day drafting 10 UFAs would not be wise but taking a chance on 2-3 players that would potentially be difference makers is a risk worth taking, worst case scenario is that you end up with nothing instead of ending up with a bad player.

My guess is that if Chicago doesn't get Vesey, Hudler becomes a Blackhawk. The fit makes too much sense.

I can't wait for the Vesey saga to end. I don't fault him for taking advantage of a loophole (which Betman needs to close yesterday), but the media circus surrounding this has been outrageous. If that kid from Michigan who should have won the Hoby Baker had gotten it (Connor I think his name is), this whole thing would have been not that much more clownish than Kevin Hayes. But damn it he won the Hockey Heisman so now he's a McDavid level can't miss guy!

Give it a rest already, media...
- Victoro311

Agreed. Too many people are acting like Vesey is the can't miss prospect of the decade and that the 29 teams that don't get him are destined to never win again. The kid is a nice prospect but come on already.

Agreed. Too many people are acting like Vesey is the can't miss prospect of the decade and that the 29 teams that don't get him are destined to never win again. The kid is a nice prospect but come on already.
- jaydogg1974

#Bozak