Conditions for Expansion & Operation:
(A) FRANCHISE BEGINS PLAY 2021-22,
(B) FRANCHISE OPERATIONAL AS OF 2020-21,
(C) CANNOT SIGN FREE AGENTS during the 2020-21 season; can trade for MiLR players and draft picks (Entry or Supplemental) anytime before expansion draft.
(D) EXPANSION DRAFT RULES:
1. Expansion draft will take place after FNHL Finals completed, prior to FNHL Supplemental Draft,
2. Expansion Draft to take place over 5-days May 19-23, 2021
3. Minimum: 10 forwards, 8 defencemen and 2 regular roster goaltenders (OR 1 regular roster plus 2 MiLR Goalies),
4. Total salaries of Expansion Draft players must be minimum of $38.7m (50% of 2020-21 FNHL Cap Ceiling of $81.5m + 10% off-season overage if needed),
5. Cannot Buyout Expansion Draft Players before April 15, 2022 TBD - but can trade them,
6. Any original Seattle Expansion Draft player can be designated a Franchise Player,
7. FNHL Vegas Golden Knights, FNHL Buffalo Sabres & FNHL Anaheim Ducks are exempt from expansion draft,
8. Maximum of 5 teams can be exempt as decided by Seattle over and above VGK, BUF & ANH,
9. A team can only lose maximum 1 player in the expansion draft,
10. Maximum 2 regular roster goalies can be drafted by Seattle OR 1 regular roster goalie plus 2 MiLR goalies,
11. Able to protect 7 Skaters and 1 Goalie OR 8 Skaters,
12. Must expose 1 Goalie from the regular roster or expose 3 in MiLR if there is no qualifying regular roster Goalie to be exposed,
13. Any team losing a Goalie in the expansion draft will be compensated (2 Supplemental Draft picks plus 1 additional 2021 Entry Draft pick at the end of Round 1 when losing a regular roster goalie or 1 Supplemental Draft pick at the end of Round 2 in 2021 when losing a MiLR Goalie)
14. Must expose 3 defencemen,
15. All Franchise Players (FP) must be protected (FP’s will be frozen until after Expansion Draft, cannot be changed during that early off-season period),
16. Maximum 4 Entry Level Contract (ELC) players can be protected,
17. Maximum 5 expiring contracts (ending in 2021 and no extension) can be drafted by Seattle,
18. Exempt: MiLR except where 1 goalie needs to be exposed,
19. Teams can trade expansion draft exemption rights with Seattle (beginning Oct 31, 2020).
20. Original Expansion Draft & Roster Players Link To-Be-Updated