Mar 23, 2017; Sunrise, FL, USA; Arizona Coyotes right wing Tobias Rieder (8) scores a goal against Florida Panthers goalie James Reimer (34) in the first period at BB&T Center. Mandatory Credit: Robert Mayer-USA TODAY Sports

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The Arizona Coyotes will have to expose some players to the NHL Expansion Draft. The question becomes who do the Arizona Coyotes protect? Part of a running series.

The Coyotes have had a rough year. Not only did they come in third-to-last in the Western Conference, they ended up outside of the top 5 picks in the NHL entry draft. Now, they have the upcoming NHL Expansion Draft to focus on.

The Coyotes are a very young team. They have a lot of players exempt from the expansion draft, but they also have some valuable players they must protect. So let’s get to who gets exposed and protected by this Arizona hockey club.

Arizona Forwards

The Coyotes have three forwards who meet the minimum requirements for the Vegas Expansion draft. Those three are Tobias Rieder, Jamie McGinn, and Brad Richardson. McGinn will be a free agent in 2019 and Richardson will be a UFA in 2018. Reider will be an unrestricted free agent in 2018. If one of these three players gets protected, expect it to be Rieder.

That means that the Coyotes will, instead, use their protection slots on restricted free agents and new contracts. Those players getting protection slots before getting signed or perhaps immediately after? Anthony Duclair, for one. Alexander Burmistrov should warrant a protection slot as well.

Joining them will be Jordan Martinook. The Arizona Coyotes, with their lack of successful forwards, might be one of the rare teams protecting eight skaters. In the interest of providing seven forwards, however, there’s another option. The Coyotes could keep Peter Holland, Teemu Pulkkinen, and Josh Jooris.

A lot of the Coyotes best forwards are exempt from this NHL expansion draft, so we will get to them.

Coyotes Defensemen

The Coyotes could also be looking at protecting four defensemen. There’s good young talent present on this Arizona blue line. That’s talent that might be worth giving up a Peter Holland or Josh Jooris over.

The three guaranteed Coyotes defensemen protected are Alex Goligoski (NMC), Oliver Ekman-Larsson, and Connor Murphy. OEL is just 25 and one of the better young offensive defensemen. He could have a Norris trophy in his future if he doesn’t have another down year.

Goligoski was paid by the Coyotes the last offseason, and the Coyotes don’t want to lose their veteran leadership at the defensive position. Murphy is just 24 and also has a pretty hefty contract.

Ekman-Larsson had the most points out of these defensemen, posting 39, including 12 goals. Goligoski tallied 36 in three more games, with six goals. Murphy added 17 for the second straight time.

The fourth defenseman then becomes the question. Do the Coyotes keep Luke Schenn, also brought in after the 2015-16 season, or go with Kevin Connauton, who is cheaper? Connauton played fewer games, while Luke Schenn only got to 8 points in 78 games.

Still, if the Coyotes roll with four defensemen, expect it to be Schenn.

Exempt Players and the Goaltenders

With a young team comes a lot of exempt players. For the Coyotes, that’s a list that includes Max Domi, Clayton Keller, and Jakob Chychrun. That’s a bright future that the Arizona Coyotes won’t have to worry about.

Along with them, the Coyotes will have exempt: Lawson Crouse, Dylan Strome, Nick Merkley, Brendan Perlini, Christian Dvorak, Laurent Dauphin, Anthony DeAngelo, Kyle Capobianco, Kyle Wood, and Marek Langhammer.

Which finally brings up the goaltending situation in Arizona. Do the Coyotes keep young goaltender Louis Domingue, who regressed this season, or elder goaltender Mike Smith, who hasn’t been an elite goaltender in his current contract?

Domingue fell from a .912 SV/2.75 GAA last year to a .908 SV/3.08 GAA this year. Mike Smith also saw a drop from last year, but played more games and still had better numbers than Domingue. If I’m Arizona, I’m willing to stick with Mike Smith here. Yeah, he’s not getting any younger, but he’s continued to prove himself as a starter, albeit a league average one.

Vegas’s Selection

Finally, how does Vegas decide who to take? If the Coyotes go with the four and four model, the options to draft will be Jamie McGinn, Brad Richardson, Peter Holland, Josh Jooris, Teemu Pulkkinen, and Kevin Connauton. If the Coyotes protect seven forwards, it’s McGinn and Richardson, Luke Schenn, Connauton, and Domingue.

Out of these guys, I’m leaning towards Schenn as a depth defenseman or McGinn, also for depth. Arizona is one of the less promising NHL expansion draft pools, and I’d want to just see what I can get.

Vegas should be hoping Arizona goes with the four and four because Holland is a promising depth center.