Expansion template online!

 Well now that our expansion teams have been unveiled, it is time to start thinking about what your mock protection lists consist of as things will happen quickly. 

Going through the exercise will also help you see what tradeable commodities you may have or need to move in order to avoid losing them in the expansion draft.  Perhaps you want to keep the player or players, but need to work out a deal with the expansion teams to not take the player if you leave them unprotected.  If you get ahead in your planning, you can look towards such a deal to ensure certain guys from your roster are indeed taken.  

One of the important things to start thinking about is listing out who your expansion-exempt players are on the roster.  Those are first-contract CCHL players or players that are under 150 games played in their NHL careers by the time our expansion draft lists are due.  There will likely be a lot of overlaps in those groups but the 150 games played should cover some young goaltenders that are not on their first deal because of years as a backup, but a team is rewarded for hanging onto them during this long development curve.  

I would highly recommend plotting out both scenarios, that is the 14 skater protection model and also the nine forwards, four defencemen, and one goaltender model.  In doing so, remember teams must expose one goaltender or defenceman but can only lose one from those two position groups on the defensive side of the puck.  If you expose more in the 14 skater method in order to protect more forwards, it could prove to be beneficial in that you protected some of your higher skill players but you'd also be exposing any goaltenders not exempt in the process.  

There are so many ways teams can go through the expansion protection process.  I've posted a link below for the expansion protect template and exposure list on the website that we will be using to submit.  

I think that's it.  Have fun playing and planning as the CCHL gets ready to expand!  

(Note:  This is a rough discussion of strategy and to introduce the template.  For full rules on expansion protection lists, please consult the rules on the CCHL website)

Expansion Template (byethost4.com) 

-The Commish!