Contract amounts and draft restrictions would make it hard for the Vancouver Whitecaps or Portland Timbers to fully exploit the list of players left unprotected for Wednesday's Expansion Draft, but there's no way to deny that plenty of talent will be available to them.
MLS Expansion Draft: Best XI Of Unprotected Players
Take away those restrictions, and a very competitive team could be thrown together.
For the sake of a fun exercise, here’s my Best XI from the unprotected list:
GK: Kyle Reynish (Real Salt Lake). He's not the most decorated goalkeeper available (that undoubtedly goes Pat Onstad), but he could probably start for at least half the teams in MLS right now. He played three regular season games as Nick Rimando's backup this year, stopping 11 of the 13 shots he faced. He also made one start in CCL play, allowing one goal in a victory over Cruz Azul.
DF: Leo Gonzalez (Seattle Sounders). The Sounders are among the deeper teams, so it wasn't a huge shock that the Costa Rican was left unprotected. At 31 years old, he still has plenty left in the tank. He has shown an ability to join the attack and, while not a shutdown player, has proven to be quality.
DF: Patrick Ianni (Seattle Sounders). Like Gonzalez, many believed Ianni would be protected after he helped the Sounders turn their season around. Ianni is a physical center back that matched up well with the likes of Conor Casey and Justin Braun.
DF: Jimmy Conrad (Sporting Kansas City). No, he's no longer the same player that was named to the MLS Bext XI four times since 2004, but at 33 he's still very good and certainly good enough to pair with a bruiser like Ianni.
MF: Atiba Harris (FC Dallas). We're still waiting for the season Harris breaks out, as he seems poised for one constantly. He scored four goals this year, the most since his rookie season in 2006, and earned starts in the Toros' two biggest games of the year.
MF: Julian de Guzman (Toronto FC). You don't get a lot of value here, but we're not worried about that. He's as good a passer as you'll find in MLS from a defensive midfielder and he has an engine that just doesn't quit.
MF: Dax McCarty (FC Dallas). With someone like de Guzman playing behind him, McCarty would be set loose in our set-up. He was an integral part in the Toros' season and he could be a big-time producer in this lineup.
MF: Freddie Ljungberg (Chicago Fire). I was tempted to go with Shea Salinas here, mainly because I think he is going to be a pretty darn good player. But I'm trying to balance the most proven with best potential and I think the Swede at least has another good season in him.
FW: Guillermo Barros Schelotto (Columbus Crew). Like a lot of players on this list, Schelotto's best days are behind him. It's hard to deny that he's got plenty in the tank for one more year, though.
FW: Juan Pablo Angel (New York Red Bulls). If I'm the Vancouver Whitecaps, I'm not sure I could avoid taking the best scorer in MLS over the past four years.
FW: Milton Rodriguez (FC Dallas). In just 13 games this season, he scored five goals. His Points Per 90 Minutes was 1.18, the kind of total that would put him among the league leaders. Assuming he’s willing to play in MLS next season and is healthy, this seems like a no-brainer pick.
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