Tuesday, November 11, 2014

2000 NHL Expansion Draft

For more information see the 1998 NHL Expansion Draft and 1999 NHL Expansion Draft

The Columbus Blue Jackets and Minnesota Wild were the last two expansion clubs allowed into the NHL, admitted in 1997. They wouldn't take to the ice until 2000, after the completion of the construction of their new arenas: Nationwide Arena in Columbus and the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul.

The Blue Jackets hired Doug MacLean as general manager on February 11, 1998, about two-and-a-half months after he was dismissed as the Florida Panthers' head coach. MacLean also assumed the title of president shortly thereafter.

The Wild hired former Flames GM Doug Risebrough over a year later, on September 2, 1999.

The rules of the 2000 expansion draft were almost exactly the same as the rules of the 1999 and 1998 expansion drafts. Existing clubs were allowed to protect either up to one goalie, five defencemen and nine forwards or up to two goalies, three defencemen and seven forwards. The Blue Jackets and Wild would alternate selections in a 'snaking' pattern (ABBABAAB) and take two players from each of the 26 existing clubs participating in the draft (a total of 52). Neither the Atlanta Thrashers nor the Nashville Predators would participate, being that they had only taken to the ice one and two years before, respectively.

Each existing club was mandated to expose players with a minimum level of experience. If a team protected two goalies they had to offer a goalie with a minimum of 10 games played in 1999-2000, or 25 games over the course of 1998-99 and 1999-2000. A "game played" in this case was defined as a minimum 31 minutes in a game. A team protecting only one goalie did not have to offer a goalie with any NHL experience. Each team had to offer at least one defenceman and two forwards with 40 games played in the 1999-2000 season or 70 in 1998-99 and 1999-2000.

All first- and second-year professionals were exempt from selection as were any unsigned draft choices, except choices from Europe from 1996 or earlier.

Of the exposed players the Blue Jackets and Wild would select three goalies, eight defencemen and 13 forwards, and two more players of any position. Any existing club that lost a goalie could not lose a defenceman, and no more than one defenceman or goalie could be chosen from an existing club. Each of the new clubs could select a maximum of six players apiece that were due to become free agents of any sort.

The deadline for protected lists was 4:00 pm Mountain Daylight Time on June 12, two days after the Devils beat the Stars for the Stanley Cup. A trade freeze also went into effect at the same time, and would last until the end of the expansion draft on June 23. Prior to the trade deadline a few minor trades were made between the existing clubs:


  • Blackhawks traded Steve Passmore to the Kings for a 4th round draft pick in 2000 or 2001 to the Blackhawks (Blackhawks chose 2000, and selected Olli Malmivaara) on May 1
  • Mighty Ducks traded Trent Hunter to the Islanders for the Blue Jackets' 4th round pick in 2000 (Jonas Ronnqvist) on May 23
  • Hurricanes traded Paul Ranheim to the Flyers for an 8th round pick in 2002 (traded later to the Lightning, who selected Darren Reid) on May 31
  • Mighty Ducks traded the rights to Stephen Peat to the Capitals for a 4th round pick in 2000 (traded later to the Canadiens, who traded to Penguins, who selected Michel Ouellet) on June 1
  • Lightning traded the rights to Eric Beaudoin to the Panthers for a 7th round pick in 2000 (Marek Priechodsky) on June 1
  • Lightning traded Kevin Hodson to the Canadiens for a 7th round pick in 2000 (traded later to the Flyers, who selected John Eichelberger) on June 2
  • Lightning traded Rich Parent to the Senators for a 7th round pick in 2000 (traded later to the Sabres, who selected Paul Gaustad) on June 4
  • Flames traded Jean-Sebastien Giguere to the Mighty Ducks for a 2nd round pick in 2000 (traded later to the Capitals, who selected Matt Pettinger) on June 10
  • Mighty Ducks traded Ed Ward to the Devils for a 7th round pick in 2001 (Tony Martensson) on June 12
  • Thrashers traded Steve Staios to the Devils for a 9th round pick in 2000 (Simon Gamache) on June 12
  • Blackhawks traded Mark Janssens to the Flyers for a 9th round pick in 2000 (Arne Ramholt) on June 12
  • Predators traded Patrick Cote to the Oilers for the Coyotes' 5th round pick in 2000 (Matt Koalska) on June 12
  • Senators traded Patrick Traverse to the Mighty Ducks for Joel Kwiatkowski on June 12


The most notable trade in retrospect was the Flames trading Giguere to the Ducks. Giguere was about to become a restricted free agent and there was a risk that either one of the Blue Jackets or Wild would have taken the former first-round pick. Instead the Flames dealt him to Anaheim, getting something for him, and Anaheim took the risk that one of Guy Hebert or Corey Hirsch would be selected.

The Blue Jackets and Wild also made several trades, some of which were made with existing clubs on the condition that certain players would or would not be picked in the expansion draft.

  • Islanders traded Chris Nielsen to the Blue Jackets for a 4th round pick in 2000 (traded to the Ducks, who selected Jonas Ronnqvist) and a 9th round pick in 2000 (Dmitri Altarev) on May 11
  • Ducks traded Espen Knutsen to the Blue Jackets for a 4th round pick in 2001(Vladimir Korsunov) on May 25
  • Avalanche traded Marc Denis to the Blue Jackets for a 2nd round pick in 2000 (traded to the Hurricanes, who selected Tomas Kurka) on June 7
  • Sharks traded Jan Caloun, a 9th round pick in 2000 (Martin Paroulek) and a conditional pick in 2001 to the Blue Jackets for future considerations on June 11
  • Sharks traded Andy Sutton, a 7th round pick in 2000 (Peter Bartos) and a 3rd round pick in 2001 (later traded to the Thrashers, who traded to the Penguins, who traded to the Blue Jackets, who selected Aaron Johnson) to the Wild for an 8th round pick in 2001 (traded to the Flames, who selected Joe Campbell) and future considerations on June 11
  • Devils traded Krzysztof Oliwa and future considerations (the rights to Deron Quint) to the Blue Jackets for a 3rd round pick in 2001(Brandon Nolan) and future considerations (Turner Stevenson) on June 12
  • Stars traded Manny Fernandez and Brad Lukowich to the Wild for a 3rd round pick in 2000 (Joel Lundqvist) and a 4th round pick in 2002 (traded back to the Wild, who traded to the Kings, who selected Aaron Rome) on June 12

The Sharks' trades with the Blue Jackets and Wild were made in order to keep goalie Evgeni Nabokov safe; that was the "future considerations" in both cases. The Avalanche traded Marc Denis to the Blue Jackets as part of a more elaborate deal that I will explain below.

Protected Lists


Mighty Ducks of AnaheimBoston BruinsBuffalo SabresCalgary Flames
Goaltenders
J.S. GiguereByron DafoeMartin BironFred Brathwaite
John GrahameDominik Hasek
Defencemen
Jason MarshallHal GillJay McKeeTommy Albelin
Ruslan SaleiKyle McLarenRhett WarrenerWade Belak
Patrick TraverseDarren Van ImpeAlexei ZhitnikDenis Gauthier
Pavel TrnkaPhil Housley
Oleg TverdovskyDerek Morris
Forwards
Antti AaltoJason AllisonCurtis BrownValeri Bure
Marc ChouinardP.J. AxelssonChris GrattonJarome Iginla
Matt CullenAnson CarterMike PecaBill Lindsay
Paul KariyaMike KnubleErik RasmussenAndrei Nazarov
Ladislav KohnBrian RolstonMiroslav SatanMarc Savard
Mike LeclercSergei SamsonovVaclav VaradaJeff Shantz
Marty McInnisJoe ThorntonCory Stillman
Steve RucchinJason Wiemer
Teemu SelanneClarke Wilm
Carolina HurricanesChicago BlackhawksColorado AvalancheDallas Stars
Goaltenders
Arturs IrbeJocelyn ThibaultPatrick RoyEd Belfour
Defencemen
Steven HalkoJamie AllisonRay BourqueDerian Hatcher
Sean HillBrad BrownAdam FooteRichard Jackman
Marek MalikAnders ErikssonJon KlemmRichard Matvichuk
Nolan PrattBryan McCabeAaron MillerDarryl Sydor
Glen WesleyBoris MironovSandis OzolinshSergei Zubov
Forwards
Bates BattagliaTony AmonteAdam DeadmarshAaron Gavey
Rod Brind'amourEric DazéChris DingmanBrett Hull
Ron FrancisMichal GrosekPeter ForsbergMike Keane
Sami KapanenJean-Yves LerouxDan HinoteJamie Langenbrunner
Ian MacNeilDean McAmmondBrad LarsenJere Lehtinen
Sandy McCarthyMichael NylanderVille NieminenGrant Marshall
Jeff O'NeillSteve SullivanShjon PodeinMike Modano
Gary RobertsRyan VandenbusscheJoe SakicKirk Muller
Shane WillisAlexei ZhamnovStephane YelleJoe Nieuwendyk
Detroit Red WingsEdmonton OilersFlorida PanthersLos Angeles Kings
Goaltenders
Chris OsgoodTommy SaloTrevor KiddStephane Fiset
Jamie Storr
Defencemen
Chris CheliosSean BrownBret HedicanAki Berg
Mathieu DandenaultRoman HamrlikJohn JakopinRob Blake
Steve DuchesneJanne NiinimaaTodd SimpsonMattias Norstrom
Nicklas LidstromJason SmithRobert Svehla
Aaron WardIgor UlanovMike Wilson
Forwards
Kris DraperMike GrierPavel BureKelly Buchberger
Sergei FederovBill GuerinViktor KozlovIan Laperriere
Tomas HolmstromChad KilgerOleg KvashaGlen Murray
Vyacheslav KozlovGeorges LaraquePaul LausZigmund Palffy
Martin LapointeTodd MarchantScott MellanbyLuc Robitaille
Kirk MaltbyEthan MoreauRob NiedermayerBryan Smolinski
Darren McCartyRem MurrayMike SillingerJozef Stumpel
Brendan ShanahanRyan SmythRay Whitney
Steve YzermanDoug WeightPeter Worrell
Montreal CanadiensNew Jersey DevilsNew York IslandersNew York Rangers
Goaltenders
Jeff HackettMartin BrodeurKevin WeekesMike Richter
José Théodore
Defencemen
Patrice BriseboisJosef BoumedienneEric CairnsJason Doig
Craig RivetKen DaneykoZdeno CharaBrian Leetch
Sheldon SourayScott NiedermayerKenny JonssonSylvain Lefebvre
Scott StevensJamie RiversDale Purinton
Colin WhiteRay SchultzStephane Quintal
Forwards
Benoit BrunetJason ArnottMariusz CzerkawskiJason Dawe
Saku KoivuSergei BrylinJosh GreenRob DiMaio
Trevor LindenPatrik EliasBrad IsbisterRadek Dvorak
Martin RucinskyBobby HolikOlli JokinenTheoren Fleury
Brian SavageJohn MaddenClaude LapointeAdam Graves
Sergei ZholtokRandy McKayMats LindgrenEric Lacroix
Dainius ZubrusAlexander MogilnyDimitri NabokovDarren Langdon
Jay PandolfoDave ScatchardPetr Nedved
Petr SykoraSteve WebbTim Taylor
Ottawa SenatorsPhiladelphia FlyersPhoenix CoyotesPittsburgh Penguins
Goaltenders
Jani HurmeBrian BoucherNikolai KhabibulinJean-Sebastien Aubin
Patrick Lalime
Defencemen
Chris PhillipsAndy DelmoreKeith CarneyBob Boughner
Wade ReddenEric DesjardinsJyrki LummeSven Butenschon
Jason YorkDan McGillisStan NeckarDarius Kasparaitis
Luke RichardsonTeppo NumminenJanne Laukkanen
Chris TherienRadoslav SuchyJiri Slegr
Forwards
Daniel AlfredssonMark GreigDanny BriereMatthew Barnaby
Magnus ArvedsonDaymond LangkowShane DoanRene Corbet
Radek BonkJohn LeClairTravis GreenRobert Dome
Andreas DackellEric LindrosTrevor LetowskiJan Hrdina
Shawn McEachernKent MandervilleRobert ReichelJaromir Jagr
Vaclav ProspalGino OdjickMikael RenbergAlexei Kovalev
Andre RoyKeith PrimeauJeremy RoenickRobert Lang
Paul RanheimKeith TkachukAlexei Morozov
Mark RecchiJuha YlonenMartin Straka
St. Louis BluesSan Jose SharksTampa Bay LightningToronto Maple Leafs
Goaltenders
Brent Johnson Steve ShieldsDan CloutierCurtis Joseph
Roman Turek
Defencemen
Al MacInnisShawn HeinsSergey GusevCory Cross
Chris ProngerBryan MarchmentPavel KubinaAlexander Karpovtsev
Bryce SalvadorMarcus RagnarssonMarek PosmykDanny Markov
Mike RathjePetr SvobodaChris McAllister
Gary SuterAndrei ZyuzinDmitri Yushkevich
Forwards
Lubos BarteckoVincent DamphousseStan DruliaSergei Berezin
Craig ConroyJeff FriesenDwayne HayTie Domi
Pavol DemitraTodd HarveyBrian HolzingerJonas Hoglund
Michal HandzusAlexander KorolyukMike JohnsonDmitri Khristich
Jamal MayersPatrick MarleauRyan JohnsonIgor Korolev
Pierre TurgeonOwen NolanFredrik ModinYanic Perreault
Scott YoungMike RicciWayne PrimeauMats Sundin
Marco SturmJaroslav SvejkovskySteve Thomas
Niklas SundstromTodd WarrinerDarcy Tucker
Vancouver CanucksWashington Capitals
Goaltenders
Felix PotvinOlaf Kolzig
Defencemen
Adrian AucoinSergei Gonchar
Murray BaronCalle Johansson
Ed JovanovskiKen Klee
Mattias OhlundJoe Reekie
Jason StrudwickBrendan Witt
Forwards
Todd BertuzziJames Black
Donald BrashearPeter Bondra
Andrew CasselsJan Bulis
Trent KlattUlf Dahlen
Brendan MorrisonSteve Konowalchuk
Markus NaslundAndrei Nikolishin
Denis PedersonAdam Oates
Peter SchaeferChris Simon
Vadim SharifijanovRichard Zednik

Players Available for Selection


Mighty Ducks of AnaheimBoston BruinsBuffalo SabresCalgary Flames
Goaltenders
Tom AskeyVIRobbie TallasIIDwayne RolosonIIGrant Fuhr
Guy HebertTyrone Garner
Corey HirschIIAndrei TrefilovII
Dominic Roussel
Blaine RussellII
Defencemen
Timo Ahmaoja#Elias AbrahamssonIIJean-Luc Grand-PierreIIEric CharronV
Ladislav BenysekJohnathan AitkenJason HollandIIBobby DollasIII
Mike CrowleyShane BelterDoug HoudaJohan Finnstrom#
Scott FergusonVIVratislav CechMike HurlbutFilip KubaII
Kevin HallerVMike MatteucciIIJames PatrickIIIStewart MalgunasV
Dean MalkocIIKeith McCambridgeRichard SmehlikFredrik Oduya
Fredrik OlaussonIIIMarty McSorleyIIIJason WoolleyIIPavel Rajnoha#
Lloyd ShawIIBrandon SmithDmitri Riabykin#
Pascal TrepanierDon SweeneyIIIDarryl ShannonIII
Nikolai TsulyginMattias TimanderSteve Smith
Denis TimofeyevLee SorochanII
Eric Van AckerBrad WerenkaIII
Sergei Zhukov#
Forwards
Frank BanhamVIShawn BatesIIStu BarnesJason BotterillII
Ted DonatoIIIKen BelangerEric BoultonMarc Bureau
Stu GrimsonIIIAaron DowneyVIRandy CunneyworthIIIJeff CowanII
Tony HrkacPeter FerraroMatt DavidsonIISteve DubinskyII
Tobias Johansson#Steve HeinzeIIMark DutiaumeIIBenoit Gratton
Peter LeboutillierVIJoe HulbigVICraig FisherVIAndreas JohanssonII
Tommi Miettinen#Dmitri KvartalnovDoug GilmourMathias Johansson#
Kip MillerVAntti LaaksonenVIDenis HamelEsa Keskinen#
Jeff NielsenCameron MannIIPaul KruseVSergei KrivokrasovII
Jeremy StevensonVIPeter NordstromScott NicholVIJan Labraaten#
Tony TuzzolinoIISean ProngerIIDominic PittisVIJesper Mattson
Bob WrenJoel PrpicVIRob RayIIIMarty Murray
Anders Soderberg#Geoff SandersonIIDave RocheII
Joel TrottierChris TaylorVIMartin St. Louis
Landon WilsonVladimir TsyplakovIIIJosef Straka#
Jeff ZehrDixon WardIIIJohn TrippII
Sergei Zolotov#
Carolina HurricanesChicago BlackhawksColorado AvalancheDallas Stars
Goaltenders
Mark FitzpatrickIIIMarc LamotheVIDavid AebischerChad Alban
Marc MagliarditiErasmo SaltarelliFrederic CassiviVIMike BalesVI
Kai Fischer#
Petr Franek
Rick TabaracciIII
Defencemen
Steve BancroftVIRadim BicanekJason BowenIIFrederic BouchardII
Paul CoffeyIIITed CrowleyVIGreg De VriesJoel BouchardII
Len EsauVIKevin DeanIIIMichael GaulVIShawn ChambersIII
Sergei FedetovIIDallas EakinsVAlexei GusarovSylvain CôtéIII
Hugh HamiltonIITodd RohloffVISami HeleniusVIAlan Letang
Dave KarpaIIMarty WilfordIIEric MessierIIDave MansonIII
Curtis LeschyshynDoug ZmolekDan SmithIIMatt MartinII
Mike RucinskiVIEvgeny Petrochinin#
Jamie Pushor
Mark Wotton
Forwards
Eric DandenaultVIBlair AtcheynumDave AndreychukIIIGuy Carbonneau
Jeff DanielsVJeff ChristianVISerge AubinVIKelly FairchildVI
Gilbert DionneVJeff DawTomi Hirvonen#Sergei Luchinkin#
Martin GelinasChris HerpergerVIMikael Johansson#Warren Luhning
Dmitri Gorenko#David LingChristian MatteVIChris MurrayII
Andrei KovalenkoIIJosef MarhaJeff OdgersBrian SkrudlandIII
Robert KronEd OlczykIIIDave ReidScott ThorntonV
Mike MorroneIINathan PerrottIIRob ShearerJamie WrightII
Andrei PetruninDerek PlanteII
Askhat Rakhmatulin#Bob Probert
Byron RitchieII
Todd SimonVI
Kevin Smyth
Detroit Red WingsEdmonton OilersFlorida PanthersLos Angeles Kings
Goaltenders
David ArsenaultIIMike MinardIIRyan BachMarcel CousineauII
Manny LegaceBill RanfordIIISean GauthierMike O'NeillVI
Ken WreggetKay WhitmoreDenis Khlopotnov#Steve Passmore
Mikhail ShtalenkovIIITravis Scott
Rich Shulmistra
Mike Vernon
Defencemen
Todd GillAdam BennettLance PitlickPhilippe BoucherII
Yan GolubovskyIIBrett HauerBrent ThompsonRich BrennanVI
Uwe KruppFrank MusilIIIJeff WareIIGarry GalleyIII
Maxim KuznetsovIIAlain NasreddineIIDave MacIsaacVI
Larry MurphyIIISami NuutinenJaroslav Modry
Bert RobertssonJan NemecekII
Reijo RuotsalainenSean O'Donnell
Alexander ZhurikMartin Strbak#
Lukas Zib#
Forwards
Pavel Agarkov#Kevin BrownVILen BarrieEric BelangerII
Doug BrownJozef CiernyPaul BrousseauVIDan BylsmaII
David Engblom#Patrick CoteChad CabanaVIBob Corkum
Johan Forsander#Boyd DevereauxIIDave DuerdenIIAllan EgelandVI
Brent GilchristIIIJim DowdAlex HicksIINelson Emerson
Alexandre JacquesIIRalph IntranuovoCraig ReichertVICraig JohnsonII
Joey KocurIIIDan LacoutureIIRay SheppardIIINathan LafayetteII
Darryl LaplanteIIRob MurrayVCam StewartSteve McKenna
Igor LarionovIIIMichel PicardVRocky ThompsonIIIgor Melyakov#
Stacy RoestMartin Reichel#Jason Morgan
Anatoly UstyugovKeijo Sailynoja#Jason PodollanII
Pat VerbeekAlexander SelivanovIIPavel Rosa
B. J. YoungIIJussi Tarvainen#Mikael Simons#
German TitovIIIJohn Thomas
Alexander VolchkovJukka Tiilikainen#
Vladimir VorobievVIMarko TuomainenVI
Juha Vuorivirta#
Magnus Wernblom#
Montreal CanadiensNew Jersey DevilsNew York IslandersNew York Rangers
Goaltenders
Frédéric ChabotMike BuzakVIWade FlahertyMilan HnilickaVI
Eric FichaudFrederic HenryIIJean-François Labbé
Kevin HodsonChris TerreriKirk McLean
Vitali Yeremeyev#
Defencemen
Byron BriskeIIBrad BombardirIan HerbersDrew BannisterII
Matthieu DescoteauxIIVladimir MalakhovIIIIlja Gorokhov#
Karl DykhuisPasi Petrilainen#Kevin HatcherIII
Miloslav GurenDeron QuintIIRich Pilon
Scott LachanceIIKen SuttonOla Sandberg#
Christian LaflammeMathieu SchneiderIII
Mike McBainIITerry Virtue
Barry RichterDavid WilkieII
Stephane RobidasII
Eric Weinrich
Forwards
Niklas Anger#Jiri BicekTed DruryDerek ArmstrongII
Jesse BelangerVSteve BruleVIMark LawrenceAlexandre DaigleII
Shayne CorsonIIISylvain CloutierVIChristian Dubé
Jim CumminsIISteve KellyIIKen Gernander
Craig DarbyIISasha LakovicVIDaniel GoneauII
Jonathan DelisleIIClaude LemieuxIIIValeri Kamensky
Matt HigginsIISergei NemchinovIIIChris KenadyVI
Arto Kuki#Richard RochefortIIRadoslav Kropac#
Trent McClearyIIRob SkrlacIIAlexander Lazarenko#
Boyd OlsonIISteve StaiosJohn MacLean
Oleg PetrovEd WardBrad Smyth
Patrick PoulinIIJeff WilliamsKevin StevensIII
Terry RyanDody WoodP. J. StockVI
Kim StaalNikolai Zavarukhin#Dmitry Subbotin#
Turner StevensonRudolf Vercik#
Peter Strom#Chris WellsII
Timo Vertala#
Ottawa SenatorsPhiladelphia FlyersPhoenix CoyotesPittsburgh Penguins
Goaltenders
Tom BarrassoIIIPer-Ragnar Bergkvist#Sean BurkeIIITyler MossVI
Mike FountainNeil LittleSylvain DaigleIIPeter SkudraII
Rich ParentVIJohn VanbiesbrouckBob EssensaIIIRon TugnuttIII
Henrik Smangs#
Defencemen
Erich GoldmannIIArtem Anisimov#‡Trent CullVIJonas Andersson-Junkka#
Kevin GrimesAdam BurtIIIJ. J. DaigneaultIIIStefan Bergqvist
John GrudenIIJeff LankVIDan FochtIIPeter PopovicIII
Igor KravchukDean MelansonSean GagnonVIJohn Slaney
Grant LedyardIIIUlf SamuelssonChris JosephDan TrebilVI
David Van DrunenIIFrançois Leroux
Per-Anton Lundstrom#
Sean McCannVI
Lyle OdeleinIII
Brad TileyVI
Forwards
Viacheslav ButsayevIICraig BerubeIIIGreg AdamsIIIJan Alinc#
Ivan CiernikIITravis BrigleyIIPhilippe AudetIIJosef Beranek
Kevin DineenMartin CervenIILouie DebruskDennis BonvieVI
Colin ForbesJody HullIIIDallas DrakeIIIRob BrownIII
David Hruska#Mark JanssensTavis HansenTom ChorskeIII
Joe JuneauKeith JonesBenoit HogueIIIPat FalloonII
Kevin MillerIIIMike ManelukVIEric HoudeIIMikhail Kazakevich#
Yves SaraultIISteve McLarenVISteven KingVIJiri Kucera#
Andy SchneiderJim MontgomeryIIFredrik Loven#Stephen LeachIII
Jeff ShevalierVISean O'BrienVICraig MillsIIIan Moran
Shaun Van AllenIIIRuslan Shafikov#David OliverIITimo Seikkula#
Rob ZamunerRadovan Somik#Kevin SawyerVIMika Valila#
Martin Streit#Mike SullivanTyler Wright
Rick TocchetIIIShayne ToporowskiIIBoris Zelenko#
Steve WashburnIIJean-Guy Trudel
Peter White
Todd WhiteVI
Valeri ZelepukinIII
St. Louis BluesSan Jose SharksTampa Bay LightningToronto Maple Leafs
Goaltenders
Jamie McLennanJonas Forsberg#Zac BierkIIGlenn HealyIII
Terry FriesenDieter KochanFrancis LariveeII
Evegeny NabokovIIDaren PuppaIIIJimmy Waite
Defencemen
Marc BergevinChris ArmstrongJassen CullimoreGreg AndrusakVI
Vladimir ChebaturkinJon ColemanVIBryan MuirIIBryan Berard
Dave EllettIIIAngel Nikolov#Jason RobinsonNathan Dempsey
Jeff FinleyJeff NortonIIIGerald Diduck
Edwin Frylen#Bob RouseTommi Rajamaki#
Yuri Gunko#Terran SandwithVI
Bryan HellmerVID.J. SmithII
Dan KeczmerV
Ricard PerssonII
Dmitri Plekhanov#
Rudy PoeschekIII
Libor ProchazkaII
Darren RumbleV
Matt Smith
Forwards
Bob BassenIIIMichal Bros#Shawn BurrKevyn Adams
Derek BekarIIAdam ColagiacomoXavier DelisleIILonny BohonosII
Sylvain BlouinVIMike CraigVBruce GardinerJason BonsignoreII
Jim CampbellIIJarrett DeulingVIDan KesaIIAaron Brand
Kelly ChaseIIIDoug FriedmanSteve MartinsIIWendel ClarkIII
Mike EastwoodIIITony GranatoRobert PetrovickyIIMark DeyellII
Derek KingIIIEric LandryVIReid SimpsonIIIKris KingII
Reed LowIIDave LowryIIIPavel TorgayevVIDon MacLeanII
Tyson NashVIStephane MatteauAlyn McCauleyII
Scott PellerinIIBrantt MyhresIIMarek Melenovsky#
Andrei PetrakovPeter RoedIIDavid Nemirovsky
Pascal RhéaumeJarrod SkaldeIIRyan PepperallII
Stéphane RicherIIIRon SternShawn ThorntonII
Stéphane RoyRon SutterIIIGarry Valk
Tore Vikingstad#Brian WisemanII
Vancouver CanucksWashington Capitals
Goaltenders
Tim KeyesIIStephane Beauregard
Corey SchwabIICraig BillingtonIII
Garth SnowIIMartin BrochuVI
Sebastian Charpentier
Defencemen
Roger Akerstrom#Nolan BaumgartnerII
Chad AllanIIPatrick Boileau
Greg HawgoodJamie Huscroft
Karri Kivi#Dmitri Mironov
Chris O'SullivanVIOleg Orekhovsky#
Brent SopelIISteve PoapstVI
Rob ZettlerIII
Sergei Zimakov#
ForwardsNotes
Hakan Ahlund#Mike EaglesIIIII—pending Group II restricted free agent
Evgeny Babariko#Miika ElomoIII—pending Group III unrestricted free agent
Brian BoninVITrevor HalversonVIV—pending Group V free agent
Paul FeroneIIJim McKenzieIIVI—pending Group VI free agent
Martin GendronVIBarrie MooreVI#—unsigned European draft choice
Roger Hansson#Ryan Mulhern—Artem Vyacheslavovich Anisimov, born 1976 in Kazan, USSR
Darby HendricksonJoe MurphyIII
Brad MayJeff Nelson
Mark MessierIIIMichal PivonkaIII
Stefan Nilsson#Joe SaccoIII
Lubomir VaicIIJeff TomsII
Harry YorkIIStefan Ustorf
Terry YakeIII

The Expansion Draft


The expansion draft was held on Friday, June 23 at the Westin Hotel in Calgary. The entry draft was held over the following Saturday and Sunday at the Saddledome.

Over.PlayerPicked fromPicked by
Goaltenders
1Rick TabaracciColorado AvalancheColumbus Blue Jackets
2Jamie McLennanSt. Louis BluesMinnesota Wild
3Mike VernonFlorida PanthersMinnesota Wild
4Frédéric ChabotMontreal CanadiensColumbus Blue Jackets
5Dwayne RolosonBuffalo SabresColumbus Blue Jackets
6Chris TerreriNew Jersey DevilsMinnesota Wild
Defencemen
7Sean O'DonnellLos Angeles KingsMinnesota Wild
8Mattias TimanderBoston BruinsColumbus Blue Jackets
9Bert RobertssonEdmonton OilersColumbus Blue Jackets
10Curtis LeschyshynCarolina HurricanesMinnesota Wild
11Tommi RajamakiToronto Maple LeafsColumbus Blue Jackets
12Ladislav BenysekMighty Ducks of AnaheimMinnesota Wild
13Chris ArmstrongSan Jose SharksMinnesota Wild
14Jamie PushorDallas StarsColumbus Blue Jackets
15Filip KubaCalgary FlamesMinnesota Wild
16Lyle OdeleinPhoenix CoyotesColumbus Blue Jackets
17Radim BicanekChicago BlackhawksColumbus Blue Jackets
18Oleg OrekhovskyWashington CapitalsMinnesota Wild
19Mathieu SchneiderNew York RangersColumbus Blue Jackets
20Ian HerbersNew York IslandersMinnesota Wild
21Artem AnisimovPhiladelphia FlyersMinnesota Wild
22Jonas Andersson-JunkkaPittsburgh PenguinsColumbus Blue Jackets
Forwards
23Geoff SandersonBuffalo SabresColumbus Blue Jackets
24Stacy RoestDetroit Red WingsMinnesota Wild
25Darryl LaplanteDetroit Red WingsMinnesota Wild
26Turner StevensonMontreal CanadiensColumbus Blue Jackets
27Scott PellerinSt. Louis BluesMinnesota Wild
28Robert KronCarolina HurricanesColumbus Blue Jackets
29Steve HeinzeBoston BruinsColumbus Blue Jackets
30Jim DowdEdmonton OilersMinnesota Wild
31Tyler WrightPittsburgh PenguinsColumbus Blue Jackets
32Sergei KrivokrasovCalgary FlamesMinnesota Wild
33Jeff NielsenMighty Ducks of AnaheimMinnesota Wild
34Kevyn AdamsToronto Maple LeafsColumbus Blue Jackets
35Jeff OdgersColorado AvalancheMinnesota Wild
36Dmitry SubbotinNew York RangersColumbus Blue Jackets
37Dallas DrakePhoenix CoyotesColumbus Blue Jackets
38Steve McKennaLos Angeles KingsMinnesota Wild
39Bruce GardinerTampa Bay LightningColumbus Blue Jackets
40Michal BrosSan Jose SharksMinnesota Wild
41Joe JuneauOttawa SenatorsMinnesota Wild
42Barrie MooreWashington CapitalsColumbus Blue Jackets
43Darby HendricksonVancouver CanucksMinnesota Wild
44Martin StreitPhiladelphia FlyersColumbus Blue Jackets
45Kevin DineenOttawa SenatorsColumbus Blue Jackets
46Jeff DawChicago BlackhawksMinnesota Wild
47Jeff WilliamsNew Jersey DevilsColumbus Blue Jackets
48Stefan NilssonVancouver CanucksMinnesota Wild
Additional Players
49Zac BierkTampa Bay LightningMinnesota Wild
50Sergei LuchinkinDallas StarsColumbus Blue Jackets
51Cam StewartFlorida PanthersMinnesota Wild
52Ted DruryNew York IslandersColumbus Blue Jackets

The foremost question on your mind, dear reader, is probably "Why did the Blue Jackets chose Rick Tabaracci with the first pick?". I personally have a soft spot for "the Tabby Cat", but Tabaracci was 31 years old at the time, an unrestricted free agent, and not a highly sought after one at that. Teams that lost free agents were entitled to receive compensatory entry draft picks, and the more those free agents were paid the higher the pick. The Predators' David Poile got a couple compensatory picks after taking Mike Richter and Uwe Krupp in the 1998 Expansion Draft; those two players were expected to receive large contracts and therefore high compensatory picks. Tabaracci wasn't going to sign a big contract with anyone.

Rick Tabaracci was chosen first overall in this expansion draft because of the deal the Avalanche made with the Blue Jackets for Marc Denis two weeks earlier. Denis was a promising young player who was expected to become a great starting goaltender. Most expansion teams start out with a pair of older goalies who hold down the fort until a younger, better goalie can be found. Doug MacLean thought he had scored himself his goalie-of-the-future by trading for Denis. The catch was he not only had to give the Avalanche his 2nd round entry draft pick for Denis, he also had to take Rick Tabaracci in the expansion draft. In taking Tabaracci it meant that the Avalanche wouldn't lose another goalie or defenceman in the draft. It guaranteed that the only other player they would lose would be one of their exposed forwards, any of which they could have done without.

This wasn't the only selection made as part of a side deal. Immediately following the draft the Wild and Blue Jackets made three trades apiece:

  • Sabres traded Matt Davidson, Jean-Luc Grand-Pierre, the Sharks' 5th round pick in 2000 (Tyler Kolarik) and a 5th round pick in 2001 (traded later to the Flames, who traded to the Red Wings, who selected Andreas Jamtin) to the Blue Jackets for future considerations
  • Canadiens traded a 2nd round pick in 2001(Kiel MacLeod) to the Blue Jackets for future considerations
  • Bruins traded a 5th round pick in 2000 (Scott Heffernan) to the Blue Jackets for future considerations
  • Flames traded Dan Cavanaugh and an 8th round pick in 2000 or 2001 (Wild chose 2001—Jake Riddle) to the Wild for Mike Vernon
  • Stars traded Aaron Gavey, Pavel Patera, an 8th round pick in 2000 (Eric Johansson) and the Wild's 4th round pick in 2002 (traded to the Kings, who selected Aaron Rome) to the Wild for Brad Lukowich, a 3rd round pick in 2001 (Yared Hagos) and a 9th round pick in 2001 (Dale Sullivan)
  • Devils traded Brad Bombardir to the Wild for Chris Terreri and a 9th round pick in 2000 (traded to the Lightning, who selected Thomas Ziegler)
  • Coyotes traded the rights to Rickard Wallin to the Wild for Joe Juneau

The Sabres traded Davidson, Grand-Pierre and the draft picks to the Blue Jackets in exchange for the Blue Jackets taking goalie Dwayne Roloson and winger Geoff Sanderson. Roloson was expendable—the Sabres elected to protect Marty Biron instead—and losing a goalie meant not losing a defenceman, such as Jason Woolley or Richard Smehlik. Sanderson was an offensively-minded forward who struggled under the Sabres' defence-first style of play at the time. In six seasons in Hartford he had seasons of 34, 36, 41 and 46 goals; in Buffalo the best he mustered was 13. Sanderson had been left exposed in the 1999 Expansion Draft but the Thrashers passed. Sanderson would go on to play over three seasons in Columbus and lead the team in scoring that first season with 30 goals and 56 points. Roloson on the other hand was not tendered a qualifying offer to retain his rights and became an unrestricted free agent. He signed a contract with the AHL's Worcester IceCats, and in 2001 returned to the NHL after signing a contract with (ironically) the Minnesota Wild.

The Canadiens traded the draft pick to the Blue Jackets for the Blue Jackets taking Fred Chabot. They did the exact same thing with the Predators in 1998. Losing Chabot meant that they wouldn't lose another goalie or a defenceman such as Eric Weinrich or Stephane Robidas.

Similarly the Wild had acquired Manny Fernandez from the Stars as their goalie-of-the-future, so their goalie selections were also not particularly imperative. Mike Vernon was 37 years old and approaching the end of his career. The Flames were almost certain to lose backup goalie Grant Fuhr to retirement and after trading away J.S. Giguere their only other goalies were RFA Andrei Trefilov and 21-year-old Tyrone Garner. Trefilov was on his way back to Europe and Garner needed much more pro experience if he ever hoped to make the NHL, so the Flames acquired Vernon for a former 2nd round draft pick (Dan Cavanaugh eventually played six years in the AHL, never making a single appearance in an NHL game) and an 8th round pick (a token sum).

The Devils had stocked up on extra forwards prior to the draft, adding Ed Ward and Steve Staios in separate trades, hoping to lose these surplus forwards and keep their Stanley Cup champion roster intact. Devils GM Lou Lamoriello took the risk no one would take the 35-year-old Chris Terreri, who other than a couple years in San Jose and Chicago had spent his career in New Jersey. Doug Risebrough called Lamoriello's bluff and took Terreri anyway. There were some extenuating circumstances at play. Lou Lamoriello is famous for his loyalty to his players, and he had known Terreri since he was head coach of the Providence College Friars hockey team and Chris Terreri was a 17-year-old freshman. Terreri was also close friends with Devils' starter Martin Brodeur. So, following the draft Lamoriello traded Bombardir to the Wild to get Terreri back. In retrospect it was misguided from a hockey operations point of view: less than a year later Terreri was traded to the New York Islanders due to his poor play and retired as a player at the end of the season. But like I said Lou Lamoriello is famous for being loyal to his players; when Terreri retired as a player Lamoriello hired him as the Devils' AHL affiliate's goaltending coach. (Chris Terreri has been the Devils' goalie coach since 2010.)


The Blue Jackets and Wild finished 23rd and 25th overall respectively in their first season. They were well out of playoff contention however they could take some solace in being far better than their expansion brethren Atlanta Thrashers, who finished 28th overall with a scant 60 points. By their third season the Wild had improved to the point that they made the playoffs for the first time, and ended up going to the conference finals (they were upset by the Mighty Ducks). In 13 seasons the Wild have made the playoffs five times. Success has been a little harder to come by in Columbus. The team did not improve upon its inaugural season's record until their fifth year, and in their 13 seasons of play the Blue Jackets have only made the playoffs twice.

Follow-up Question: How did the Islanders end up with only four players exposed?

(June 18, 2016)

In the comments below someone with the handle 'Admin' (Hi! Thanks for the question!) has asked [paraphrased] "How did the Islanders end up with only four players exposed?" The short answer is: they followed the rules. I feel your question deserves a more comprehensive answer than that though, so let's explore that together.

First, let's go over the rules:

  • Protected list: they could protect either two goalies, three defencemen and five forwards, or one goalie, five defencemen and nine forwards. They elected to do the latter.
  • Players with fewer than three years of pro experience were not available for selection by the Blue Jackets or Wild, and did not have to be protected.
  • The Islanders—given they protected one goalie, five defencemen and nine forwards—had to offer at least one defenceman and two forwards with 40 games played in the 1999-2000 season or 70 combined games played across the 1998-99 and 1999-2000 seasons, and one goalie with any experience.

Now let's go over the Islanders' roster at the end of the season, broken down by goalies, defencemen and forwards.

Goalies: Wade Flaherty, Roberto Luongo, Steve Valiquette, Kevin Weekes

Luongo (one year of pro experience) and Valiquette (two years) were exempt by virtue of their inexperience. The Islanders had to leave at least one goalie exposed, so they chose to protect Weekes and expose Flaherty. In choosing to protect only one goalie the Islanders were entitled to protect five defencemen and nine forwards.

Defencemen: Mathieu Biron, Eric Brewer, Eric Cairns, Zdeno Chara, Vladimir Chebaturkin, Ray Giroux, Ian Herbers, Jamie Heward, Kenny Jonsson, Evgeny Korolev, Jamie Rivers, Ray Schultz

Heward was claimed on waivers by the Blue Jackets on May 26, a little over two weeks before the draft. Chebaturkin's contract expired and he signed a deal with the Blues three days before the draft. Biron, Brewer, Giroux and Korolev were exempt given their inexperience.

Remember that five out of the remaining six could be protected. They protected Cairns, Chara, Jonsson, Rivers and Schultz, and left Herbers exposed.

Forwards: Mikael Andersson, Tim Connolly, Mariusz Czerkawski, Johan Davidsson, Ted Drury, Josh Green, Sean Haggerty, Brad Isbister, Olli Jokinen, Jason Krog, Claude Lapointe, Mark Lawrence, Mats Lindgren, Petr Mika, Bill Muckalt, Dimitri Nabokov, Vladimir Orszagh, Scott Pearson, Dave Scatchard, Mike Watt, Steve Webb

Haggerty and Watt were claimed off waivers by the Predators about three weeks before the draft. Andersson, Davidsson, Orszagh and Pearson's contracts expired and they signed new ones with European clubs prior to the draft. Connolly, Krog, Mika, and Muckalt were exempt given their inexperience.

That left Czerkawski, Drury, Green, Isbister, Jokinen, Lapointe, Lawrence, Lindgren, Nabokov, Scatchard and Webb, and of those 11 players the Islanders could protect nine and leave two exposed. The two they left exposed had to have at least 40 NHL games played in the '99-'00 season, or 70 over '98-'99 and '99-'00. Nabokov had only played in 30 NHL games over that two-season span, so by default one of the spots on the protected list had to be used on him. The remaining spots on the list were used on Czerkawski, Green, Isbister, Jokinen, Lapointe, Lindgren, Scatchard and Webb, leaving Drury and Lawrence up for grabs.

And there you have it: they were a young team with many players not having to be protected due to the limited length of their professional careers, they only protected one goalie which gave them the option to protect the most defencemen and forwards possible, and they ended up only having to offer the absolute bare minimum of one goalie, one defenceman and a pair of forwards. Also keep in mind that they had a fairly small total number of players under contract to begin with, almost certainly a result of the penny-pinching of then-owners Howard Milstein and Steve Gluckstern. Milstein and Gluckstern sold the team to Charles Wang and Sanjay Kumar in April, 2000.

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© 2012-2017 Mark Parsons