Navigating to the Northwest - Seattle Navigators Expansion NHL 18 - Dsimp13's Dynasty

Dsimp13's Dynasty Blog

Navigating to the Northwest - Seattle Navigators Expansion NHL 18

Posted on March 11, 2018 at 04:16 PM.

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HOUSEKEEPING NOTES
I should have added this to my initial post, but here are some dynasty notes...
The first season will be a rough one, as the team is not very strong, so I will simulate a little more than normal. I will try to post updates each month, plus big season happenings as I go. Once I get the first year behind me, I will play probably 2/3 games a month, mostly big division games. The playoffs I have always played every other game, and each elimination game. I will more than likely continue that here. That's about all the housekeeping I needed to get in, so on with the show!

Following both the instant fan support of the Vegas Golden Knights and the divisional alignment issues that came with it, NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman has negotiated with an ownership group the fast track of a 32nd NHL franchise, the Seattle Navigators!

With this move, the Calgary Flames have relocated to the Central Division, and the Navs will take their spot in the Pacific...this aligns the geography a bit, plus adds some rivalry between the new expansion teams.

Their jersey scheme is blue and black, with white/gold trim. The alternate tries to inspire the image of waves that true navigators must handle.
(Images are underneath the spoiler tag)

Spoiler

Although their team is behind the 8 ball, unable to swing moves to stock picks in the upcoming draft like Vegas, plus having the talent pool scoured a bit, the Seattle ownership team has put faith and confidence in new GM Dan Simpson to lead this team to success. It all begins with the expansion draft...

While Vegas had the pomp and circumstance of the team announcement at the NHL Awards, GMDS has quietly faxed his roster into league offices for approval. The team looks as follows:

NHL Expansion Draft - Seattle Navigators
Pick	Team	Player	Pos	Ht	Wt
1	Anaheim Ducks	Sami Vatanen	D	5'10"	183
2	Arizona Coyotes	Alex Burmistrov	LW	6'1"	180
3	Boston Bruins	Kevan Miller	D	6'2"	210
4	Buffalo Sabres	Cody Franson	D	6'5"	224
5	Calgary Flames	Matt Stajan	C	6'1"	195
6	Carolina Hurricanes	Cam Ward	G	6'1"	185
7	Chicago Blackhawks	Ville Pokka	D	6'0"	213
8	Colorado Avalanche	Matt Nieto	LW	5'11"	190
9	Columbus Blue Jackets	Joonas Korpisalo	G	6'3"	190
10	Dallas Stars	Stephen Johns	D	6'4"	230
11	Detroit Red Wings	Luke Glendening	RW	5'11"	199
12	Edmonton Oilers	Mark Letestu	C	5'10"	197
13	Florida Panthers	James Reimer	G	6'2"	217
14	Los Angeles Kings	Alec Martinez	D	6'1"	212
15	Minnesota Wild	Jonas Brodin	D	6'1"	193
16	Montreal Canadiens	Phillip Danault	C	6'1"	193
17	New York Islanders	Calvin de Haan	D	6'1"	197
18	New York Rangers	Matt Puempel	LW	6'2"	204
19	Nashville Predators	Calle Jarnkrok	LW	5'11"	186
20	New Jersey Devils	Devante Smith-Pelly	RW	6'0"	214
21	Ottawa Senators	Ryan Dzingel	C	6'0"	190
22	Philadelphia Flyers	Matt Laughton	LW	6'1"	190
23	Pittsburgh Penguins	Matt Cullen	C	6'1"	200
24	San Jose Sharks	Melker Karlsson	C	6'0"	180
25	St. Louis Blues	Dmitrij Jaskin	LW	6'2"	217
26	Tampa Bay Lightning	Braydon Coburn	D	6'5"	223
27	Toronto Maple Leafs	Seth Griffith	RW	5'9"	191
28	Vancouver Canucks	Reid Boucher	LW	5'10"	195
29	Washington Capitals	Philipp Grubauer	G	6'1"	182
30	Winnipeg Jets	Tyler Myers	D	6'8"	229

The selections weren't the most attractive, a whole lot of 3rd liners, some with a bit more potential than others.

CENTERS
There isn't a real standout in the bunch. Danault, Karlsson, and Dzingel could all vie for the chance to hold down the third and fourth lines, with possibility of moving up the lineup. Letestu can add some experience and versatility, while Cullen is coming off back to back Stanley Cups in which he played a decent sized role, and can still produce at age 40. Hopefully keeping his minutes down can extend his career a bit enough to help the youngsters grow.

LEFT WINGER
More of the same, just middle of the lineup talent. Puempel will start the year in CT where he can play top line AHL minutes to get experience in. Jarnkrok is playing on a great contract (5 years, $2 million), and both Jaskin and Boucher will hopefully grow a bit.

RIGHT WINGER
GMDS has some faith that his LW core can play both sides of the ice, as he went with only three RWs. Glendening will be a very cheap and serviceable 4th liner/depth guy, as his contract is very team friendly at $1.8 million for each of the next 4 years. Smith-Pelly will compete for a third line role for years to come, and Griffith can hopefully tap into some potential if he is managed correctly.

DEFENSE
Vatanen and Brodin are the highlights here, with Coburn and de Haan chipping in to flesh out the top 4. Alec Martinez, Tyler Myers, and Cody Franson were three guys that can hopefully be flipped for some picks at the draft, as they don't really fit with the Navs' slow build scheme. Miller & Johns are a very decent third pairing/7th defensemen options, and Pokka will play in the AHL to try to get as much playing time as possible.

GOALIES
Korpisalo will be groomed to be the goalie of the future, with the hope that Cam Ward and either Reimer or Grubauer (GMDS will try to flip one of the two to a goalie-needing team) can service the NHL squad while Korpisalo gets starters minutes in the AHL.

This team isn't pretty, but hopefully GMDS can gain some picks out of a few players at the NHL Draft, and then maybe as the deadline nears and contenders are looking for depth pieces.

The Navigators don't have any real strengths at a particular position (other than goalie), so the strategy heading into the draft will be taking the best players available.