Drafting Kyah Simon all part of the plan for Dash’s Vera Pauw

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Vera Pauw may have thrown the women's soccer world for a loop on Tuesday, but as far as the new Dash coach is concerned, her world is shaping up nicely.

Australian attacker Kyah Simon is a big reason why.

The NWSL held a Dispersal Draft for the players who no longer had a team due to the folding of the Boston Breakers. The draft included Boston players who already were under contract and players selected by Boston in the college draft on Jan. 18.

It also included players who were not under contract but whose rights were controlled by Boston.

So as not to eliminate roster spots by 10 percent several weeks before the start of preseason camp, the NWSL provided incentives for clubs to draft the Boston players.

Players selected in the draft who already were under contract or were draft picks will not count against their new team's roster limit or its salary cap, meaning clubs can carry more than the maximum 20 players. Those players also do not require an extra international player spot.

The players who do not have contracts, however, did not come with the same incentives.

Kyah Simon #17 of Australia challenges Azusa Iwashimizu #3 of Japan for the ball during the FIFA Women's World Cup Canada 2015 Quarter Final match between Australia and Japan at Commonwealth Stadium on June 27, 2015 in Edmonton, Canada. less Kyah Simon #17 of Australia challenges Azusa Iwashimizu #3 of Japan for the ball during the FIFA Women's World Cup Canada 2015 Quarter Final match between Australia and Japan at Commonwealth Stadium on June 27, ... more Photo: Kevin C. Cox, Getty Images Photo: Kevin C. Cox, Getty Images Image 1 of / 3 Caption Close Drafting Kyah Simon all part of the plan for Dash’s Vera Pauw 1 / 3 Back to Gallery

Instead of taking advantage of those incentive-laden players, the Dash selected Simon with the No. 6 overall pick.

In January 2017, Simon withdrew from the second year of her contract with Boston so she could have surgery to repair shoulder problems that had been bothering her for nearly a decade.

Simon is a proven scorer, but unlike other players available in the draft, she will count toward the 20-player cap; she will require an international roster spot and the Dash will be on the hook for her salary.

So why pick her? According to Pauw, if she could have had her earlier, she would have.

The blockbuster trade the Dash made on the day of the college draft was supposed to have a corresponding move to it from the Dash's end. After trading away Carli Lloyd and Janine Beckie for Christen Press, Pauw wanted to reinforce the spine of the team by trading for Simon's rights.

With the Breakers on the verge of folding, however, they were not allowed to make any trades. That meant if the Dash wanted Simon, who they had at No. 2 on their Dispersal Draft board behind Rose Lavelle, they would have to pick her Tuesday.

Pauw said she knows of at least one team that wanted to draft Simon in the top five Tuesday but did not because it knew Pauw wanted her.

"Thanks to some other clubs that they did not pick her," Pauw said. "They knew in the (draft-day) trade things did not go really well for us. Simon was someone we had in our plans."

Pauw said she already has spoken to Simon and that she is keen on returning to the NWSL. Pauw added that a deal could be finalized as soon as Wednesday.

She views Simon as a central attacking midfielder who can play just behind the striker. In the Dash's case, that is Press.

"Simon will be the player who will dive into the box in the space that our striker will leave," Pauw said. "We will have extra scoring ability that way. Press has very good feeling of the moments to get inside of the game.

"We need to see in training how they compliment each other. They are two completely different types of players. Kyah will immediately dive on a ball when we lose it so we can take more risk in our attacking play. Press is more of a finisher."

The Dash also drafted left back Lotta Okvist and goalkeeper Sammy Jo Prudhomme.

Boston signed Okvist as a discovery player on Oct. 31. She most recently played for Swedish club Pitea IF, appearing in 25 games during the 2016-17 season.

The 20-year old played for Sweden's U-23 national team at the Nordic Tournament against the United States, Norway and England. She also has played with Sweden's U-19 and U-17 national teams.

"The way she plays, she can also play left center back," Pauw said. "We need to see if she gets to the lineup position. She will give a lot of maturity to the defense. Although she is only 20, she plays with a lot of maturity. She will not do any strange things on the pitch.

Drafting Prudhomme gives the Dash a unique opportunity to roster three goalkeepers this season. League rosters are capped at 20 players, so teams typically carry only two goalkeepers since carrying more would take away from their already thin depth of field players.

Jane Campbell returns as the unquestioned starter, but she will miss some time to be with the national team. In the past, the Dash have had to call in a temporary replacement to be the back-up goalkeeper. They will not have to do that now.

Bianca Henninger was offered a new contract after the 2017 season. The Dash also drafted University of Washington product Sarah Shimer in the fourth round of the college draft.

Last year as a rookie, Prudhomme appeared in five games and had three shutouts. She set the club record of 337 consecutive minutes without allowing a goal.