MONTREAL – The Montreal Impact unveiled on Monday its list of 11 protected players in preparation for the expansion draft taking place this Tuesday at 2pm.
FC Cincinnati, who will play its inaugural MLS season in 2018, can pick five players among those who are not protected from other teams, excluding the teams that saw one of their players chosen by Los Angeles FC last year. Those teams are Toronto FC, Columbus Crew SC, the San Jose Earthquakes, Sporting Kansas City and the Seattle Sounders FC.
The Impact protected goalkeeper Evan Bush, defenders Victor Cabrera, Daniel Lovitz and Jukka Raitala, midfielders Ken Krolicki, Ignacio Piatti, Samuel Piette, Alejandro Silva, Saphir Taïder and Jeisson Vargas, as well as forward Maximiliano Urruti.
Players who are members of the Generation adidas program who haven’t graduated at the end of the 2018 season, as well as homegrown players on the supplemental roster or on the reserve roster, are excluded from the process. Those players are Shamit Shome, Louis Béland-Goyette, David Choinière, Mathieu Choinière, Jason Beaulieu and Thomas Meilleur-Giguère.
Players whose contracts were not renewed or whose options were not exercised will be available during the expansion draft and could, if selected, negotiate with FC Cincinnati.
The following players can be selected during the expansion draft: Quincy Amarikwa, Micheal Azira, Rudy Camacho, Zakaria Diallo, Clément Diop, Chris Duvall, Rod Fanni, Kyle Fisher, Anthony Jackson-Hamel, Matteo Mancosu, Michael Petrasso, Bacary Sagna and Michael Salazar. Jackson-Hamel will be available, even if he’s a homegrown player, because he’s part of the Impact’s senior roster.
Teams can lose only up to one player during the expansion draft.
