Report: Organization's Top Prospects Could be on the Move

With the new Las Vegas NHL team set to announce their official name any minute today, it appears as though next summer's expansion draft is already causing a few headaches for teams such as the Detroit Red Wings. 

Pierre LeBrun outlines very clearly how complicated it will be for general manager Ken Holland to retain the services of both the team's most promising forwards Andreas Athanasiou and Anthony Mantha, as both are third-year professionals and will therefore either have to be protected or exposed. 

Veteran forward Frans Nielsen who was signed last summer as an unrestricted free agent, has a no movement clause in his contract which automatically protects him, and Dylan Larkin is in his second year as a pro which exempts him from the draft as well. 

LeBrun assumes that the Red Wings will opt to protect Henrik Zetterberg, Gustav Nyquist, Justin Abdelkader, Tomas Tatar and Riley Sheahan, which forces them to protect only one of the following four players: Athanasiou, Mantha, Darren Helm or Luke Glendening. Either way, it's clear that the organization will have to say goodbye to one of their star prospects in either Mantha or Athanasiou... 

Of course, a controversial decision could be rendered if both Niklas Kronwall and Zetterberg are exposed, given the serviceable years they have offered to the organization. As both are above the age of 35, it would be surprising to see them get snatched up by Las Vegas. 

Moreover, either Jimmy Howard or Petr Mrazek will be exposed. If it were up to me, Mrazek would be the one heading out strictly based on this season's performances. Jared Coreau of the Grand Rapids Griffins will make a serviceable backup goaltender to either of the netminders, and it's safe to say that Holland will have his hands full in a few months...