Each day this week, we'll publish mock expansion keeper lists by division, and up next is the Pacific. On Friday, we'll publish our mock expansion Las Vegas Golden Knights roster.
*NMC = No-movement clause *All first- and second-year professionals, as well as all unsigned draft choices, will be exempt from selection (and will not be counted toward their club's applicable protection limits).
Anaheim Ducks
F
D
G
Corey Perry (NMC)
Hampus Lindholm
John Gibson
Ryan Getzlaf (NMC)
Sami Vatanen
Ryan Kesler (NMC)
Cam Fowler
Rickard Rakell
Kevin Bieksa (NMC)
The Ducks depth at defense appears to be a curse and as such will be forced to make Josh Manson available lest they swap out one of the defensemen above.
That move will also guarantee Jakob Silfverberg's availability. The Ducks are sure to lose someone of significance to the Golden Knights.
Arizona Coyotes
F
D
G
Shane Doan
Oliver Ekman-Larsson
Mike Smith
Tobias Rieder
Alex Goligoski (NMC)
Teemu Pulkkinen
Connor Murphy
Alexander Burmistrov
Radim Vrbata
Anthony Duclair
Jordan Martinook
The blessing for the Coyotes is that few members of their future are eligible for the expansion draft, so the team is unlikely to lose anyone significant.
Unfortunately, having to make available two players who are signed through 2017-18 means Brad Richardson gets exposed.
Calgary Flames
F
D
G
Johnny Gaudreau
Mark Giordano
Brian Elliott
Sean Monahan
Dougie Hamilton
Troy Brouwer
T.J. Brodie
Mikael Frolik
Mikael Backlund
Sam Bennett
Michael Ferland
The Flames should have no problem locking up all their heavy hitters. That said, new acquisitions Curtis Lazar and Michael Stone are sure to be exposed, while goaltender Chad Johnson - who's had stints as the club's starter this season - is also likely to be available.
Edmonton Oilers
F
D
G
Jordan Eberle
Andrej Sekera (NMC)
Cam Talbot
Milan Lucic (NMC)
Oscar Klefbom
Ryan Nugent-Hopkins
Adam Larsson
Zack Kassian
Patrick Maroon
Anton Lander
Leon Draisaitl
The Oilers' most notable moves heading into the expansion draft will be leaving a couple of veterans exposed.
Players such as Matt Hendricks and Benoit Pouliot, who have produced very little, are likely to be exposed, while Anton Lander - who is producing 1.6 points per game in the AHL - could be protected in lieu of the men above.
Once again, exposure requirements could leave utility player Mark Letestu available.
Los Angeles Kings
F
D
G
Anze Kopitar (NMC)
Drew Doughty
Jonathan Quick
Dustin Brown
Alec Martinez
Jeff Carter
Jake Muzzin
Tyler Toffoli
Trevor Lewis
Tanner Pearson
Marian Gaborik
The most intriguing decision for the Kings will be to almost certainly make Ben Bishop available.
What could skew the above list is if the team decides to make players such as Marian Gaborik and Dustin Brown available. Both are under contract for the next four and five years, respectively, with a combined cap hit of $10.75 million.
The Kings could decide to risk that Vegas won't want to add those contracts and in turn protect more depth forwards.
San Jose Sharks
F
D
G
Joe Thornton
Brent Burns
Martin Jones
Patrick Marleau
Marc-Edouard Vlasic
Logan Couture
Justin Braun
Joe Pavelski
Mikkel Boedker
Tomas Hertl
Melker Karlsson
The Sharks could be forced to expose some of their depth forwards and defensemen, but their strong core is safe.
Vancouver Canucks
F
D
G
Henrik Sedin (NMC)
Alexander Edler
Jacob Markstrom
Daniel Sedin (NMC)
Christopher Tanev
Loui Eriksson (NMC)
Luca Sbisa
Brendan Gaunce
Sven Baertschi
Markus Granlund
Bo Horvat
Given his age and contract, it's clear the Canucks will expose Ryan Miller.
On defense, the most notable exposure is Erik Gudbranson, while the team is also expected to leave some depth prospects available.
As for forwards, limited contracts leave Brandon Sutter as the Canucks' choice to be left exposed.
(Photos courtesy: Action Images)
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