So let us start the speculation. Marc Connelly states: Keep in mind the rules: Each team will be allowed to protect 12 players. Each team may leave unprotected only one senior international. Each team may lose no more than three players in the Expansion Draft. After a player has been selected by an existing team, such team shall have the right to protect an additional player So who's protected ... who's not? My list (what I think will happen - not what I would do): Protected 1Rey 2Pablo 3Kotschau 4Borchers 5Cannon 6Henderson 7Spencer 8Powell 9Pedro 10Chung 11Delgado 12 DLT Unprotected zizi SI unprotected stewart sullivan vallow crawford cila foss erush digi beckerman What I WOULD do ... put Powell on the unprotected and the cut Zizi outright.
I agree on your 12, given the rules that we're operating under. Otherwise I;d unprotect Powell and protect Cila. Don't cut anyone until after the draft. If SLC/Chivas wants to take on Zizi's salary, don't get in their way.
Well, this could be Spenny's last year, which would open up a spot on the protected list. Of the remaining players, I don't know who I'd put in there. I have a feeling that Hanki would put ZiZi in that spot, but I'd put Beckerman in there. With Crawford and Cila also possibly battling for that spot. If the list is as GoRapids puts it, who do you think would be taken? I think we would definitely be saying goodbye to Beckerman. As for the rest, I think it depends on who else is available and how well Crawford and Cila show over the rest of the season. Vallow could also be gone depending on what keepers are available. I don't know enough about all of the other MLS teams backup goalies to tell which ones are good. Oh, can we put Hanki on the unprotected list and hope that Salt Lake takes him? And I could see Beckerman going to Salt Lake and lighting it up there if he gets put in a different role, under a different coach. Just to piss off all of us.
Conolley even had Zizi in one of the potential SLC teams. He'll probably go there, get healthy and lead them to the promise land.
I think Hendo and Chung are also entering their twilight years, so it's hard to say who you would rather hang onto. They still have 1 or 2 good years left, but that's about it, so are there younger, more promising players worth holding onto vs. letting Chung go cuz he only has one good year left? I think the problem is that the Rapids really don't have any developing talent as a result of poor draft picks and the salary cap problems that have allowed them to let a young, promising player like Carrieri go (to a lesser extent, Kingsley or Castellanos, although I know those two didn't impress as much...) I'd say protect Beckerman and Cila, only because Beckerman may blossom under a different coach, and Cila has shown flashes, but I would probably want to protect Hendo for sure, and Chung if he recovers to end the season strong. Powell would be on the unprotected list if it wasn't for the only 1 SI per team rule... like GORaps put it, cut Zizi and stick Powell on the list.