Canadiens leave door open for Seattle Kraken to select Carey Price

Could Carey Price become a Seattle Kraken come the expansion draft?

When the Vegas Golden Knights became a franchise four years ago, the modern-age hockey observer learned a lot about possibilities that can be presented through an expansion draft.

Fast forward to 2021, and the unthinkable has reportedly been discussed.

Carey Price being left exposed and potentially playing for a team that isn’t the Montreal Canadiens.

According to The Athletic’s Pierre LeBrun, Price has waived his no-movement clause, and will be exposed for the NHL’s newest franchise, the Seattle Kraken, to select on July 21.

NHL rumors: Could the Seattle Kraken be interested in Carey Price?

Players with no-movement clauses are exempt from the expansion draft. And for Price in Montreal, him being exposed for Seattle started with the goaltender waiving what was agreed upon when he signed his mega-deal with the Canadiens.

Price inked an eight-year, $84 million extension with Montreal in the summer of 2017. Since then, the goaltender has led Quebec’s team to a Stanley Cup Finals appearance.

But there’s two sides to every story — and in the case of this one, Price being left exposed presents a number of intriguing possibilities for the Kraken.

Carey Price adds instant ‘name value’

According to LeBrun, the idea that Seattle would select Price is unlikely, due to his lucrative contract. Still, the speculation surrounding whether Montreal can actually lose the goaltender will continue to intensify.

When the Golden Knights were on the clock in 2017 to construct their first-ever roster, the team opted to select Marc-Andre Fleury from the Pittsburgh Penguins. The pick was seen as one that would bring instant credibility and “name value” to Vegas.

Little did the hockey world know that the team would go on to make the Conference Finals in three of its first four years, including a trip to the Cup Finals in 2018.

The parallels between Fleury then and Price today are evident, but that doesn’t mean the circumstances are the same.

Montreal’s franchise-goaltender will carry a cap hit of $10.5 million during the 2021-2022 season, according to CapFriendly — a substantial number that 32 out of 32 teams would be hesitant to take.

But the idea of cap relief isn’t new to the Canadiens this offseason. In fact, their captain, Shea Weber’s $7.8 million deal may not be a factor on the team’s books at all during the regular season due to a season-ending injury.

Weber’s situation, along with Price’s exposure, may present Montreal with well over $20 million of cap space to work with for the remainder of the summer.

Seattle’s on the clock

Kraken general manager Ron Francis may elect to select players with low cap hits all across the board, with the benefit of youth on the side of Seattle.

But the contrary opinion would suggest that with the expansion-friendly rules implemented by the NHL, selecting a goaltender like Price would benefit the team out of the gate, like Vegas in 2017.

The Golden Knights’ expansion blueprint from four years ago could be mimicked, and with Price being left exposed for Kraken to take, the story has just reached its climax.

Protected-players lists across the league will be submitted on Sunday morning, with the expansion draft set to take place on July 21.