Assume the Devil’s Protection List in the 2025 Extended Draft – Hockey Writer – New Jersey Devils
As we continue our summer dog days, fans are anxiously awaiting the next move for the New Jersey Devils. It has been 39 days since General Manager Tom Fitzgerald claimed that expanding Luke Hughes was his top priority, but hasn’t crossed the finish line yet. The silver lining of these slow periods is a certain time to dig deep into interesting ideas and theoretical situations.
Related: New Jersey Devils’ Top 10 Prospects for 2025-26
So, it’s an interesting thing: Assuming the NHL fast track is an expansion franchise-their 33rd-draft within a week. For this assumption, let’s assume that L. Hughes’ contract has been figured out and the rest of the roster is unaffected. Who will the devil protect?
(This is purely theoretical. Usually, the extension draft is held before the free agent is opened). )
guide
Each team has the option to protect:
- Eight skaters (forward or defender) and one goalkeeper
- Seven forwards, three defenders and one goalkeeper
As Hockey writer’s Andrew Forbes explained: “When expanding the draft, players who currently have no dynamic clauses as part of the contract must be protected by their respective franchise and will rely on the team’s protected roster. To add all first and second year professional skaters (including invalid draft picks) (including unsigned draft picks) [franchise] Select from it and will not be considered part of the protected player list. ”
Who should be protected? (7 forwards, 3 defenders and 1 goalkeeper)
- F Jesper Bratt – No sports terms are required (unless waived).
- F Timo Meier – No sports terms are required (unless waived).
- f Ondrej Palat – No sports terms are required (unless waived).
- f Jack Hughes – The team’s best striker; it’s effortless.
- nico hischier – Captain and one of the best two-way centers in the world.
- f Dawson Mercer – Probably the best offensive output for the rest of the strikers. Age is around him too. It would be stupid to give up on nothing.
- （Paul Cotter） – Elite Original Tools and Age (25) give him an edge over some others.
- D Dougie Hamilton – No sports terms are required (unless waived).
- D Luke Hughes – A budding star. Another effortless.
- D Jonas Siegenthaler – One of the best defensive defenders in the league, with a cheaper contract than Johnathan Kovacevic and Brett Pesce.
- G Jacob Markstrom – Devil’s clear network machine; if they bring Jake Allen, Nico Daws might be the new backup.
Who is exempt?
- Simon Nemec, Seamus Casey, Arseni Gritsyuk and all of their prospects have not competed in more than two professional seasons.
Who has no protection?
- F Connor Brown
- F Stefan Noesen
- F CODY Glass
- F Kurtis MacDermid
- Fevgenii dadonov
- f juho lammikko
- F. Jonathan Gruden
- F Angus Crookshank
- F Nathan Legare
- F Ryan Schmelzer
- F Mike Hardman
- F Marc McLaughlin
- F Brian Halonen
- F Thomas Bordeleau
- D Colton White
- D Dennis Cholowski
- D Calen Addison
- D Brett Pesce
- D Brenden Dillon
- D Johnathan Kovacevic
- G Jack Allen
- G Nico Daws
Most likely to choose: Brown, Northon, Glass, Dadonov, Pesce, Kovacevic, Allen & Daws
There are two ways to look at. On the one hand, the Devil has many talented players, which is a good thing. This means their team is much deeper than they were a few months ago. Palat and Hamilton’s No Action Terms, on the other hand, prevented them from protecting more players. It is almost certain that if protected due to their massive contracts, the expansion franchise will skip both.
Based on pure contract value, it will make sense to choose Kovacevic for the expansion team. He will probably play the top four well over the next five seasons and it will hardly get into trouble as he rises to the championship. PESCE can say something similar, but both Allen and DAW are interesting goalkeeper choices.
Again, since this is theoretical, if the Devil knew that the expansion draft was coming, the Devil might approach past offseason in a different way. However, it is still interesting to consider the complexity of protecting/not protecting some players and the long-term impact on the franchise.
Also, just because players are available doesn’t mean they are not helpful to the current team. Take players like Dillon or Noesen, who, despite the lack of ice time, brings advantages and fills important roles.
The Devil recently lost to Jon Merrill (Vegas Golden Knights, 2017) and Nathan Bastian (Seattle Cleken, 2021) in the expansion draft. However, there are eight teams in each department, and many teams oppose once Add another franchise. What do you think! ?
