Is Hagel Expansion Eligible?
Is Hagel exempt from the expansion draft?
I saw where he only played 8 games in 18/19. Does that still count as a pro season?
Answer
Hagel is eligible for the expansion draft (not exempt). On each player page, we have a spot showing if a player is Expansion Eligible, and on Hagel's it shows Eligible (see screen shot). If you click the ? and Learn more, you can see the full rules. A player is eligible if they have 3 or more professional seasons, and the definition of Professional Season is 1+ game in any of ECHL/AHL/NHL if the player was 20 or older as of Dec 31 of that season (if they are less than 20 as of Dec 31 of the season then it requires 10+ NHL games to count as a professional season). In the 2018-19 season, Hagel was 20 by Dec 31, so his 8 games in the AHL meet the requirement of a professional season. He has subsequently had 2 more professional seasons, making him expansion eligible.
