The NHL continues to look at the possibility of expanding and becoming the first professional sports league in North America with 33 teams.
When the league expanded for the first time since 2000, it was a new process that hockey fans experienced with the creation of the Vegas Golden Knights. It was something entirely new and something we had never seen before with the introduction of protective lists.
Vegas and Seattle had drafted teams with players selected from the remaining 30 teams available. The Jets were no exception, losing two players in the process. Today, we’ll take a look at which players the Jets drafted and how they performed on their new teams.
View the original article to view the embedded media.
Chris Thorburn – Vegas Golden Knights (2017 Expansion Draft)
View the 5 images of this gallery on the original article
Thorburn was selected by the Golden Knights as part of a deal for the Jets’ first- and third-round picks in 2017. Winnipeg also received a first-round pick in return that the Golden Knights acquired from the Blue Jackets.
The move was smart on both sides, as the Jets didn’t lose a key player who was unprotected and effectively added draft capital to Vegas for free, as they released Thorburn, a pending free agent, following the expansion draft. After leaving the Golden Knights, he signed with the St. Louis Blues, where he played two more seasons, winning the Stanley Cup in 2019.
The Sault Ste. Marie native was already a fixture in the Jets lineup at the time, even hailing from Atlanta. He scored 24 goals and 32 assists for 56 points in 396 games over six seasons with the Jets.
Mason Appleton – Seattle Kraken (2021 Expansion Draft)
View the 3 images of this gallery on the original article
You might be scratching your head a little here, as Appleton is currently on the Jets roster and will play a key role on the team alongside captain Adam Lowry and Nino Niederreiter.
However, when the 2021 Expansion Draft arrived, Seattle picked up Appleton and played him in their lineup for 49 games, scoring six goals and adding 11 assists for 17 points.
Appleton functioned better in his role with the Jets and as the trade deadline approached, Winnipeg re-acquired the Wisconsin product in exchange for a fourth-round pick.
He continues to play a significant role for Winnipeg, as his line of Niederreiter and Lowry have played together more than any other Jets line, with a combined total of 682 minutes played, according to Money Puck’s line analysis.
The trio also formed the best defensive line of any line in the NHL, playing more than 225 minutes together. They gave up just 1.32 goals per 60 minutes and were the Jets’ highest scoring line last season with 23 goals.
