As BSN first reported in April, the Avalanche indeed went ahead with the decision to protect goaltender Semyon Varlamov for the upcoming NHL Expansion Draft. The incoming Las Vegas Golden Knights will not be able to select the Russian goalie, nor any of the other 10 Avs players on the protected list, which was released Sunday morning.
It is thus now possible the Avs could lose young goalie Calvin Pickard to the Golden Knights, who will pick their first team on Wednesday. Under rules of the expansion draft, the Avs and every other NHL team must lose one eligible player from their roster, unless a side deal is made with Las Vegas.