The Detroit Red Wings’ protection list is an indictment on prior first-round draft choices.
The NHL on Sunday released the lists of which players teams protected ahead of Wednesday’s expansion draft, and Wings general manager Steve Yzerman left 2016 first-round pick Dennis Cholowski exposed.
The protected players are forwards Dylan Larkin, Tyler Bertuzzi, Robby Fabbri, Jakub Vrana, Adam Erne, Michael Rasmussen and Givani Smith; goaltender Thomas Greiss, and defensemen Filip Hronek, newcomer Nick Leddy, and Gustav Lindstrom.
Teams could either protect seven forwards, three defensemen and a goaltender, or eight skaters of any position and a goaltender.