1998 NHL Expansion Draft
The NHL Expansion Draft 1998 was conducted on 26 June 1998 by the North American Hockey League NHL. The expansion draft was held, as the NHL has been extended to a team and the squad of the Nashville Predators needed to be filled with players.
The rules
The Nashville Predators were allowed to choose 26 players, an already existing from each team.
Players who played only one or two years in the NHL were excluded from the draft. Each of the 26 established teams could either a goalkeeper, five defenders and nine striker or two goalkeepers, three defenders and seven striker lock, so they could not be selected in the draft.
Each team had at least a defender and a striker can be unlocked, who had completed at least 40 games in the 1997-98 season. In addition, the teams had ever let a goalkeeper unlocked, who had at least 25 contested in the 1997-98 season and at least ten since 1995-96. According to these settings to your goalies should be avoided that teams through trickery or Squad manipulations as part of the NHL Expansion Draft was the case in 1992, to gain an advantage and are not experienced goalkeeper in Draft available.
It was interesting this year that many players who had the Nashville Predators selected, on July 1, expired contracts and the players had a free choice team. As compensation for any player who left the team before the first season, the Predators received additional draft picks in the NHL Entry Draft in 1999.
Draft result
Explanation: T = goalkeeper; V = defenders; F = Forward ( Forward ); C = Centre Forward; LF = Left winger; RF = Right winger.
For reasons of order the players are numbered, but they must not have been selected in that order. The order is not relevant, as the Nashville Predators were the only team in the expansion draft in 1999.
Agreements
In order for the Nashville Predators refrained not select specific players unlocked, they received " compensation " of some teams:
- Calgary Jim Dowd transferred to Nashville, so they chose not goalkeeper from Calgary
- Chicago Sergei Kriwokrassow transferred to Nashville, so they do not chose Chris Terreri
- Kimmo Timonen Los Angeles transferred and Jan Vopat to Nashville, so they did not select Garry Galley
- Montréal transferred Sébastien Bordeleau to Nashville, so they do not chose Peter Popovic
- Philadelphia transferred Dominic Roussel and Jeff Staples to Nashville, so they did not select Paul Coffey
- San Jose Ville Peltonen transferred to Nashville, so they did not select Tony Granato
- St. Louis transferred Darren Turcotte to Nashville, so they do not chose Jamie McLennan
After the Draft
Several players who were selected in the expansion draft, remained after the draft not long in the team. The following players left the team before the start of the 1998/99 season:
- Mike Sullivan was transferred on 30 June 1998 for a draft pick in the NHL Entry Draft in 1999 to Phoenix
- Uwe Krupp signed on 7 July 1998 a contract in Detroit
- Tony Hrkac was transferred on 9 July 1998 for future consideration to Dallas
- Doug Brown was transferred on 14 July 1998 for Petr Sykora, a draft pick in the NHL Entry Draft in 1999 and future consideration to Detroit
- Mike Richter signed on 15 July 1998 a contract with the New York Rangers
- Frédéric Chabot joined on 20 July 1998 to Los Angeles
- Mikhail Schtalenkow was transferred on 1 October 1998 with Jim Dowd for Éric Fichaud, Drake Berehowsky and Greg de Vries to Edmonton
- Al Iafrate ended his career before the season starts