As the National Hockey League prepares to welcome its 32nd team in the 2021 expansion draft, fans begin to wonder what the new Seattle team will look like.

The last expansion draft took place in 2017 when the Vegas Golden Knights entered the NHL. The new Seattle team, dubbed the Seattle Kraken, have yet to establish a head coach. General Manager Ron Francis is not worried and wants to remain patient to find the perfect fit.

The expansion draft will take place in summer of 2021. Many mock drafts and guesses have surfaced as the other 31 teams in the NHL scramble to predict which of their star players may be in jeopardy.

30 players in total will be selected for the Seattle team, one from each team. Vegas’s team, the Golden Knights, will be the only team exempt from the expansion draft.

Other teams will have to balance salary caps with their current lineups to protect their players. The general manager of the new Seattle team will also have to look at salary caps for each desired player.

The Kraken will skate into a new arena budgeted at over $850 million and now boasts a virtual 360 tour for interested fans. Beautiful views are just one of the arenas exciting draws for the city. The arena has been named the Climate Pledge Arena because it is the first net-zero carbon certified arena in the world.

The NHL has not been immune to the devastating financial effects of COVID-19, however. It is estimated that the NHL will need a cash influx of $300 million to ensure that the 2021-2022 season is on track financially.

The Seattle Kraken could be the answer to their financial troubles as the franchise must pay an expansion fee.

Fans can visit the team’s social media accounts to stay posted on what to expect during the 21-22 season, and tune in this summer to see what players are nabbed in the expansion draft.