Ottawa Senators

NHL Expansion Draft: Senators May Leave Surprising Player Unprotected

The Ottawa Senators have an interesting decision to make come the NHL Expansion Draft. Could they leave a surprising player exposed?

by
NHL Trade Talk
December 13, 2020

After suggesting the team might protect Mike Reilly on the blueline, leaving Nikita Zaitzev and Josh Brown exposed, Hailey Salvian of The Athletic shifted to talk about the goaltending and laid out a bit of a twist in Ottawa for the Senators and their NHL Expansion Draft plans.

With his new deal, Matt Murray should be the Senators' starter in net for the next few years. So he's the obvious choice for Ottawa to protect in the expansion draft, right?

Maybe not, writes @hailey_salvian ⤵️https://t.co/2A1u22OzKR
— The Athletic NHL (@TheAthleticNHL) December 7, 2020

Salvian suggested that the obvious play in goal would be to protect newly-signed free agent goaltender Matt Murray. Instead, she believes the Senators might leave him exposed. The idea is that he’s too expensive for Seattle to be interested in and as such, “In a way, his contract acts as protection.”.

Salvian explains that the ticket price of four years at $6.25 million AAV is simply too rich for the Kraken’s blood and that his new contract would deter the team from taking him. At the same time, she notes that leaving Murray unprotected, “would fill the exposure requirement and allow the Senators to protect one of their younger goalies in Hogberg or Daccord.”

Is It A Risky Move?

There are certainly elements of risk involved in such a play. First, Murray would be among the better goaltenders available in the expansion draft if he was left unprotected. Second, the Kraken will have plenty of cap room seeing as they are starting from a blank slate.

Matt Murray Pittsburgh Penguins Oilers trade

Finally, one would have to wonder what that message would send. The Senators signed Murray to a very lucrative deal at a time it was believed goalies could be had for less and they committed to him being their starter. To allow a team like Seattle to pluck him away for free and with the prospect depth Ottawa has in goal, they can arguably afford to lose someone.

Part of this could depend on how Murray plays this season. If he’s hot and performs well, the Kraken might be more excited about the idea of taking him as a starter. If he struggles, his contract may look like a bad deal.

Next: Edmonton Oilers News & Rumors: McDavid, Bouchard, Savoie & Nurse