Report: Sportsnet sends Jordan Harris and Patrik Laine to new NHL teams
Even though NHL executives publicly say that there are no expansion plans, the majority of experts agree that there will be one.
Many believe that there will indeed be an expansion in the coming years.
That said, as reported by the DLC site, the folks at Sportsnet have speculated that there will be a new expansion team debuting as early as next fall and which player from the 32 other NHL teams might be available via an expansion draft.
It should be noted that this is purely speculation about the identity of a player who would not be protected by his team and would be the best choice for this expansion team, whether it is in Houston, Atlanta, Quebec, or even Arizona.
Jordan Harris, the player who would be sacrificed by the Montreal Canadiens in case of expansion?
According to Sportsnet journalist Ryan Dixon, Jordan Harris would indeed be the player sacrificed by the Canadiens and selected by the new franchise in question.
As we know, the 24-year-old American defenseman could interest several teams because of his play, but unfortunately, Montreal's defensive lineup is already well-stocked, and with recent contracts awarded to Kaiden Guhle, Arber Xhekaj, and Justin Barron, it is questionable whether Harris is still part of the organization's long-term plans.
Therefore, it would be surprising for Kent Hughes to protect him, as the expansion draft rules allow teams to protect 7 forwards, 3 defensemen, and 1 goalie, or 8 skaters and 1 goalie.
If we were to do the exercise for the Canadiens, we might expect to see Nick Suzuki, Cole Caufield, Juraj Slafkovsky, Alex Newhook, Kirby Dach, Mike Matheson, Kaiden Guhle, and Samuel Montembeault on the protection list.
It should be noted that the organization's young prospects, such as Ivan Demidov, David Reinbacher, Lane Hutson, and Logan Mailloux, who have little or no NHL experience, are exempt from the expansion draft.
Returning to this virtual new franchise, it could have big names put forward by Sportsnet such as Nikolaj Ehlers (Jets), William Karlsson (Knights), Kaapo Kakko (Rangers), Patrik Laine (Jackets), and a certain Jonathan Drouin.
Credit: DansLesCoulisses
Jordan Harris pourrait être le choix de la 33e équipe advenant un repêchage d'expansion
| POLL | ||
Among these Canadiens defensemen, which one would you protect in a potential expansion draft? | ||
| Arber Xhekaj | 618 | 83.1 % |
| Justin Barron | 26 | 3.5 % |
| Jayden Struble | 51 | 6.9 % |
| Jordan Harris | 49 | 6.6 % |
| List of polls | ||
